Carry On
by K-yers
Summary: "He isn't a knight in shining armor, just a madman with a blue box. But don't worry; if there's ever a moment where you feel like a damsel in distress, he'll be the Prince Charming you had been hoping for." Ten/OC
1. 1: The Doctor

**A/N: Hello world! Thanks for clicking on "Carry On". I recently fell into Doctor Who and fell in love with the entire universe. This story starts off somewhere between episodes "Doomsday" and "Smith and Jones".**

**Secondly, I've changed the relationship between Rose and the Doctor. Instead of romantic it's more like brother and sister. Another note I'd like to get off my chest is that I'm well aware that the door to the TARDIS opens inward, but for the sake of the story, it now opens outward.**

**I think I've held you up for long enough now. So go grab a snack and enjoy: "Carry On". :) **

* * *

When you wake up in the morning, what do you first expect out of a day? Normally teenagers wish to see their crush, boyfriend, girlfriend, whatever; they want to get a good grade on that big test coming up in the class that morning. All I really wanted was to get through another day without cussing out my parents for dragging me here.

I hated England. It was rainy and gray and blank. There was almost no color anywhere. I wanted nothing more than to go home.

Home was the sunny and bright Burbank. I actually had friends there and my family had lived at Burbank for years. The only reason we had left the glorious light of Burbank was because of my dad's company was moving its headquarters to London, England.

At first, I was excited. Who wouldn't be? The idea of abandoning everything and heading out on an adventure was tempting and I didn't plan on living in Burbank for the rest of my life. But I also didn't plan on missing it this much.

My days here still feel like a dream. I feel as if any moment now, I'll wake up and be back in California with the sun tanning my skin and the stars of Hollywood living close by. But I wouldn't wake up, no matter how much I wanted to.

My school was okay, I guess. I had to wear a uniform; a black skirt with a light blue button-up shirt with a black blazer on top of it; gray socks and pinchy black shoes. It was a private school, and I had gotten in on a scholarship. The kids here were nice enough, but it still felt like they were regarding me like a guest, instead of one of their own. Another thing about the school, because it was only three blocks over, my parents decided to let me walk every day.

It had happened on a particularly damp Thursday morning. A polite boy in my neighborhood had pointed out a shortcut to the school, so I had been taking that route ever since it was noticed. I still had sleep in my eyes when I rounded the corner to that alley only to find myself face to face with a blue police box.

The box was placed directly in the middle of the alley, blocking my path, but that wasn't the only weird thing about it. I didn't remember ever seeing this box here before. No one would've had time to install a box, and even if they did, why place it _here_? I stepped closer.

Because the box was in the center of the alley, I couldn't really go around it. There was barely a foot of space left between it and the wall. I sighed and started to open the door of the box.

I didn't even have time to blink before the blue door swung out and struck me hard in the face. I cried out in pain and my hands flew to my nose. Had my nose broken?

"I'm sorry about that," A thickly accented voice told me from my shoulder. "Didn't see you there. Are you alright?" A string of sarcastic remarks came to my mind, and I had full intention of releasing hell on this person. But once I had removed my hands from my eyes and actually saw him standing there, all the insults died in my throat.

The man who had hit me with a door was way taller than me. Dark brown hair spiked just above a pair of warm, brown eyes. By far the warmest thing I had seen in England. The man's eyebrows disappeared into his hair.

"Are you alright?" He asked again. I gave myself a mental shake and nodded my head. He grinned with wide and even white teeth.

"I'm so sorry about that. I didn't think that'd I'd run into anyone here." The words flew from his mouth so fast I could barely keep up. So I just nodded stupidly.

"It's fine; it was partially my fault anyway." The man's eyes widened.

"I don't believe I'm familiar with that accent. Where are you from?"

"Um, Burbank, California; in America."

His eyes got even wider. "That's amazing! I'm the doctor, by the way." He said suddenly, sticking his hand out speedy quick.

I eyed him nervously. "Doctor who?"

"Just the Doctor," He said. I hesitantly reached out and shook his hand twice. This Doctor smiled even more widely.

Odd, I thought. He continued to inspect me up and down. "Who are you and where are you from again?"

"Anne Worthing and Burbank, California," I repeated myself. "It's in America."

"I think I've been there a few times," the "Doctor" replied thoughtfully. "But I don't think Burbank. I'll have to visit there sometime soon."

"It should be nice this time of year." I said quietly. This whole situation was starting to get awkward. I started looking at the blue box for a way around it. The Doctor followed my gaze.

"Am I in the way?"

I nodded. "It's fine though; I'll just go find another way."

"No, no, that'll take too long. Allons-y!" The Doctor said in a blur of words. Before I could even react he had already grabbed my hand and was pulling me through the insanely small gap between the box and the wall. I felt my face turn red as the bricks pressed against my back. We burst through the other side and I wasted no time prying my hand from his.

"Thanks for the help, but I have to get going now. I'll be late for school." I said hurriedly. The Doctor's eyes widened so much they looked perfectly round.

"Which school are you going to anyway?"

I hesitated. At first I found this weird doctor to be kind of cute, but now he was teeter-tottering on unusual. If I had learned anything from unusual, it would be that it was best to keep far away from it. But I didn't think that I could lie to him either: I didn't know any other schools around the area.

"I'm going to Saint Katherine's; it's just a few blocks away." I said reluctantly. The Doctor nodded and started talking to himself so fast that I couldn't even keep up.

While the man was absorbed in his thoughts I started creeping away as quietly as possible. Thankfully, he didn't even notice my leaving. I shook my head as I crossed the street to the block, hoping that I wouldn't see the Doctor ever again.


	2. 2: Saint Katherine's

The bell sounded just as I climbed the front steps into the school. "Dammit," I swore under my breath. The polished black-and-white tile hallways emptied quickly as all the students entered their classrooms. That's how serious these kids were about their schoolwork: a few more seconds of social time meant nothing here.

I groaned and sped-walked to my class on the second floor. I had Algebra II for first block. The teacher who taught it was Mr. Walters, an extremely tall man with balding iron gray hair and steely gray eyes. His mouth always seemed to be in a thin line and, so far, I hadn't seen him smile once.

I sighed before I laid a hand on the cold, metal doorknob. But it wouldn't budge. It was locked, I realized.

"That's just great," I growled. Now I would have to get Mr. Walters to open the door for me. So with shaking hands, I knocked.

There was a moment of petrified silence that forced me to hold my breath. The door opened with a snap and I was towered over by Mr. Walters. He glared at me from behind his square glasses.

"Pleasured by your appearance as always, Miss Worthing," He said in a voice that resembled rocks grinding over each other. He took a step back so that I could enter. I ducked my head nervously and maneuvered my way to the middle of the class to my seat. A sweep of whispers filled the air as a group of girls in the back corner started to giggle among themselves.

"Be quiet, all of you!" Mr. Walters snarled. "Open your books to four hundred-twenty-two and start numbers one through fifty. No cheating and no talking!" And without another word, Mr. Walters disappeared behind his newspaper.

I rolled my eyes and did my work just as he said. It would just be better if I just kept my nose in my own business.

* * *

History was my last class before lunch. I wasn't necessarily looking forward to it. I still didn't have anyone to sit with and I hadn't made a new friend who would allow me to sit at their table, so I was stuck.

My seat in history was the fourth desk on the wall, and when I walked in, I noticed that our teacher wasn't there yet. It seemed to me that if Mrs. Jenner, the history teacher, wasn't in class within the first five minutes, then she wouldn't show up at all.

The class didn't bother quieting down immediately, seeing as we were unsupervised. I took a good look around the room before bending my head over the notebook I had with doodles drawn all over it. As I began working on an elaborate drawing of Snoopy, the classroom door banged open and caused me to mark all over the paper.

"Alrighty then, class," A thickly accented voice said brightly from the front of the classroom. I snapped my head up as I recognized the voice. Good Lord, it was the Doctor man from this morning.

"This is history class, am I correct?" The Doctor asked. After a brief moment of hesitation, a girl in the front nodded her head slowly. The Doctor smiled broadly at her. "Good; first thing's first, I'm called the Doctor. And what are we learning about today?"

"Sorry, um, _doctor_," The same girl up front was saying as politely as she possibly could without insulting him. "We don't know what we're supposed to be learning; you're supposed to have it ready by now."

The Doctor's smile faltered for a second. But he still looked as cheerful as normal, or as normal as he could get. "Okay then, how 'bout we start with a pop quiz?" The class groaned while he pulled a pair of black glasses from his pocket and the Doctor smirked and shook his hand about wildly.

"No, no, no, let's have none of that. This quiz will be painfully simple. If you don't know these answers than I'll worry about your education system." This actually got a few dry laughs out of some kids in the front.

"Now, let's say that a thunderstorm is heading our way." The Doctor started pacing in the front of the class. I watched him warily. "As we all know, lightning is a form of static electricity. This was first proven by—who?"

The girl who had been kissing up to him so far shot her hand up into the air. After a brief moment of deciding on whom to pick, the Doctor nodded and pointed to her.

"Benjamin Franklin," She answered proudly. The Doctor smiled broadly.

"Right—o! What's your name now?"

"Rosie," The girl said even more proudly, puffing out her chest and batting her eyelashes at the Doctor.

He seemed to go in a trance though. His eyes got distant and cold all of a sudden and his jaw tightened considerably. But almost as soon as it came, his expression softened back into his usual cheerful smile. "Fine job, Rosie."

The boy behind me sneezed suddenly. The Doctor brought his eyes up to probably say a polite "bless you" and his warm brown eyes found me.

A sly grin spread across his face slowly. From behind his glasses, his brown eyes were sparkling with mischief. "How 'bout a tad of American history for a change? Does everyone know a little something about the good old U.S.?"

At the mention of America, several students turned to glance at me. I blushed and silently cursed the Doctor for bringing it up. The Doctor continued pacing around the classroom, making eye contact with me every now and then.

"The Founding Fathers of the United States," The Doctor began. "I want you to name at least one, starting with Rosie."

Rosie jumped at being addressed by the Doctor so directly, but smiled prettily and answered in a clear voice. "I think John Adams was one, doctor."

"Nailed it," The Doctor replied. "Who else knows one? How 'bout you, lad?" He nodded to a boy with flaming red hair in the middle row.

The boy blinked and yawned. "Uh, George Washington was there, I believe."

"That he was," The Doctor praised. "Your name is?"

"Jeremy,"

"Good job, Jeremy," The Doctor made direct eye contact with me this time. "What about you? D'you know a Founding Father?"

My fingers knotted themselves together and unwound themselves over and over again. I looked up to find the entire class staring at me. The Doctor was staring at me intensely, as if willing me to get the answer correct.

"Thomas Jefferson," I replied coldly. The Doctor smiled warmly despite my sourness and didn't bother me again during that class.


	3. 3: Strange Things

Well that could've gone worse, I thought as I picked up my lunch from the cafeteria ladies. It looked like all the tables were filled. I sighed and walked out the doors to the courtyard.

The courtyard was organized with green metal tables dotted across the landscape. There was a small garden in the far back that had stone benches surrounded by flowers and bushes. A tall oak tree stood directly above this sanctuary, almost as if the tree itself was guarding the small and sheltered area.

I started for the garden; it was the only place in this school that I actually liked. Once you were in there, time seemed to stop and you could easily forget where you were. This was a major reason why I liked it so much.

I plopped down on a bench just at the edge and started to unwrap the chicken salad sandwich that I had received. I wrinkled my nose as the scent floated up into my nostrils.

"Is that seat taken?"

The new voice startled me so badly that I almost dropped the stinky sandwich. I looked up to see the Doctor standing over me with a halo of light around his head. I shaded my eyes and nodded.

"Oh," He said and turned away. The Doctor's eyes scanned the small area until they rested on a stone bench just five feet away. He threw me a pointed glance and sat down. "I have a question, Miss America."

"Ask away," I said. I set the sandwich aside; it stunk and there was more food on my tray anyway. The Doctor started sifting through his own tray.

"How'd you get here anyway? I found Burbank on a map; it's pretty much on the other side of the world. How'd you get from there to here, especially since you seem to dislike it so much?"

I hesitated. Teachers weren't supposed to be asking these sorts of questions. I turned towards him and stared at him. He seemed to be asking innocently. It dawned on me that he was just curious.

"My dad's work moved us here," I finally answered. "His company's headquarters was located is Burbank for years, that's why we lived there for so long. But then some other company bought his and they moved headquarters all the way out here."

The Doctor nodded and took a huge bite out of his chicken salad sandwich. His nose wrinkled but other than that he seemed to enjoy the sandwich. I grabbed my own sandwich and held it out in empty air.

"Do you want this?" I asked. The Doctor looked faintly surprised but smiled through a mouthful of food and took the sandwich. I watched him place both sandwiches down and reach for his own tray. He plucked the miniscule plastic cup of diced fruit up and reached out into the air.

"I hate pears," The Doctor said simply as I took the small cup of pears. I snorted under my breath and smiled. The Doctor noticed. "Is that a smile I see?" This only caused me to smile even bigger. "I actually got you to smile. I think I just won the ballgame, everyone."

We sat there laughing for a moment, silenced only by the Doctor taking another bite of his chicken salad sandwich. The silence stretched for a few minutes, broken by the sound of the wind rushing through the big oak tree's branches. The Doctor looked up and appeared to be listening carefully.

"Are you really a teacher?" I asked. The Doctor snapped out of his daze and raised his eyebrows at me. "Are you actually a teacher?" I asked again. He blinked.

"No, I'm just passing through. Thought I might as well stop by here and see what's going on."

"But how did you even get in here? If you're not a proper teacher then how did you manage to sub today?"

The Doctor laughed. "You must learn to not ask so many questions. It takes all the fun away from everything."

The wind rushed around us and swept through the oak tree's branches again. The Doctor once again became absorbed in the sound. His eyes got glazed over and he started leaning back. I narrowed my eyes at him, still leaning farther and farther back. Then I watched as he toppled over into the ground beneath him.

I stood up quickly and rushed over to help him. The Doctor's eyes were finally back to normal. He blinked and stared at me. "What is this place?"

Now it was my turn to be confused. "What do you mean? It's the garden; at least that's what it's called."

"The garden?" The Doctor turned his back on me and leapt deeper into the bushes. I followed him as far as I could.

"You can't go back there! It's against school rules." The Doctor's head popped out of the bushes.

"Tell me Anne, have you ever been one to follow the rules?"

I stammered at him. "That depends on what kinds of rules they were, I guess."

"Say the fate of everyone in this school depended on it; then would you break the rules?" He asked. The warm brown eyes had turned hard. I nodded. "Good girl, now if you're coming, come on!"

I reluctantly followed him into the bushes, having to stomp on the weeds and smaller shrubs to successfully do so. He didn't exactly wait up for me either. By the time I had managed to leave the benches behind, the Doctor had already disappeared farther into the greenery. The sounds of rustling leaves and underbrush being crushed told me where the Doctor was heading. So I started in that direction.

It wasn't hard to find the Doctor; he was standing at the base of the oak tree. He had his head tipped back and was staring at the branches. I looked up as well, but I couldn't see anything. The only thing up there worth any attention was the wind that was rattling through the top branches. Yet the Doctor was staring up at them as if they were the most fascinating thing in the world.

"What do you see?" I asked. The Doctor head jerked and he spun around on his heel to face me.

"What d'you know 'bout this place?" The Doctor asked. I shrugged.

"Not much; just that it was created about a month before I got here."

The Doctor's eyes widened. "And when did you get here exactly?"

"October fifteenth," I answered immediately. The Doctor closed his eyes tightly then opened them again.

"That would suggest that it was planted here on purpose…to house it…" He started rambling on so quickly I could hardly keep up. But what I did catch scared the hell out of me.

"To house what?" I asked in a tight voice. The Doctor glanced up at me, as if just remembering that I was there.

"We got to get out of here," He mumbled. Before I could even question him, the Doctor already had his hand on mine and was dragging me through the dense garden and into the dim light of the courtyard.

I opened my mouth to start asking my tidal wave of questions, but the scenery around me caught the words in my throat.

How long had we been in the garden? Only a few minutes ago, this courtyard had been brimming with people. But now it was abandoned; not a single soul was in sight. The Doctor looked confused as well; his dark eyebrows were knitted together in a perfect "V" and his mouth had become a thin line.

"Well, that's peculiar," He stated simply.

"We couldn't have been inside there for that long," I said. "It wasn't even five minutes."

"No it wasn't. Time froze for us inside that so called garden of yours. The real question is why."

I huffed. "'Time froze'? That sounds like something from a Sci-fi show."

"Stranger things have happened," The Doctor said. He turned away from me and started speed-walking towards the school. I hurried after him.

"Are you going to find out how that happened?" I asked his back. He turned around so sharply that I almost crashed into him.

"Of course _I_ am; are you?"

I narrowed my eyes at him. "Does that mean I can come with you?"

The Doctor rolled his eyes. "You sure do ask a lot of questions. _Yes_; now come on now, Annie!"

Without hesitating or thinking about the consequences, I followed him. I would later realize the Doctor never offers himself twice. When he reached out for you, you either take his hand and launch headfirst into an adventure; or refuse and forever wish that you had.

"Allons-y!"


	4. 4: Digging

Just as in the courtyard, the black-and-white hallways were deserted. Through the windows of the classrooms, I could see all the students with their heads bent over their textbooks and worksheets. Their lives were just as ordinary as they had been a few measly minutes ago. And here I was following a complete stranger through the halls of my school just because he said so.

The Doctor reached into the inside of his pinstripe suit and pulled out a small, gleaming silver contraption. I noticed that it had a small blue light at one end. To me it looked like some sort of fancy pen. The Doctor pointed it straight out and the little device started to trill softly.

"What is that thing?" I asked. The Doctor continued what he was doing.

"It's called a sonic screwdriver,"

"Screwdriver?"

The Doctor turned and frowned at me. "Yes; it's a screwdriver. Why is that so hard to believe?" I raised my hands in a gesture of surrender and followed him the rest of the way through the hall.

The soft trilling noise coming from the screwdriver was constant. The Doctor frowned at it and turned it off with a groan. "It's not picking up any signals: which means we're in the wrong place." Without a backwards glance at me he launched off and up the stairway. I dashed after him.

I caught up to him at the top of the stairwell. He was pointing the screwdriver directly out in front of him again. But this time the instead of the soft trilling downstairs, the screwdriver was beeping shrilly.

"It's a wonder no one can hear that," I commented. The Doctor turned back to me with raised eyebrows.

"Anne Worthing, you're a genius!"

"Come again?"

The Doctor was spinning on his heel from one end of the hall to another. "The energy in that garden downstairs was enough to draw me towards it. And if I'm correct on what we're facing, then tearing up a few weeds should be enough to drag it into the courtyard."

My head was starting to pound. "I'm so confused," The Doctor looked at me as if I had just drooled down the front of my shirt.

"I just need a little more time to fully plan everything. How 'bout I explain everything in the garden? Meet me there after school?" The Doctor asked, stepping closer with every question. I felt heat rise into my face.

"Do you promise to answer _all_ of my questions?" I asked, raising my eyebrows. The Doctor stared me down hard and smirked.

"Oh you're good. I'll answer any question you have about our current situation; after that we'll have to see."

It seemed like that was all I was going to get from him at the moment. I sighed and extended my pinky finger. "Pinky promise?"

The Doctor looked at me as if I had just gone crazy. "A what?"

"A pinky promise," I exclaimed. "How could you _not _know what a pinky promise is?" The Doctor's face remained blank. "Just stick out your pinky finger."

The Doctor hesitated before doing so. He seemed cautious at this simple thing. And when I showed him how to wrap the pinkies together, he stiffened dramatically. Then his face broke into a smile.

"How clever!" His smile looked to be gleaming. "Okay then, pinky promise." With that, he turned around on his heel and started heading for his class.

* * *

The day dragged by. I couldn't focus on any of my classes. The only thoughts that swam through my head were filled with the garden and warm brown eyes.

The second the last bell rang throughout the school, I leapt out of my desk and sprinted down the stairs to the courtyard. Students spilled out after me; to head for the vending machines. I ignored them and stood beside my bench in the garden. I was just standing there, minding my own business when a pair of hands yanked on my jacket from behind and into the bushes. I landed hard against something firm.

"Careful there," The Doctor's voice sounded from above. I glanced up to find his brunette head haloed by the faint England sun. Heat flooded my face and I quickly steadied myself and ducked my head to hide it from the Doctor.

"So, what's the plan?" I asked. The Doctor raised his hand and beckoned me to go deeper into the grove of thick undergrowth. We barely managed to reach the oak tree again. The Doctor stared up at the tree branches and closed his eyes once more.

"An Ala," He said after a minute of dead silence. The Doctor's brown eyes opened and turned to look at me. "Go ahead and ask your questions,"

"Firstly, what's an Ala?" I asked. The Doctor sat himself cross-legged on the mossy ground.

"An Ala is a creature from the planet Aloviti. They've been known to steal another creature's identity, but only while the sun is up. At night, they are forced to leave the creature's body and rest in a sanctuary. These sanctuaries are always places of nature; such as this garden."

My head started spinning. But I forced the dizzy motion to cease and looked back to the Doctor. He was staring at me as if he was waiting for me to run for the hills. To prove I wasn't going anywhere, I sat down directly in front of him. This action caused him to give me a small smile.

"Say these Ala things exist, why do they need to live inside other creatures?" I asked. The Doctor was giving me the impression that he already knew what questions I was going to ask and had prepared himself.

"An Ala does not feed the way you or I do. They survive off living energy. They don't even have to possess someone to steal their energy. All that energy that they take is stored in their area of sanctuary." He cut off and glanced upwards. "I believe that this particular Ala is storing all that energy inside this oak here. I've heard that the places where they store stolen energy is unaffected by the common laws of time and space. That would explain why we felt like we were inside this garden for a few minutes when in reality we were in here for thirty."

"This is crazy," I breathed, holding my head in my hands. "How do you know all of this?"

"I'm the Doctor,"

I glanced back towards him and observed him for what felt like the first time. The Doctor looked to be in his mid-twenties. Warm brown eyes; soft-looking brunette hair; a slightly freckled face; he looked _normal_. Yet here he was, talking to me about creatures called Ala and planets and living energy. How did he know these things? Was he some kind of government agent or something; trained for an alien invasion? If so, why would he be in a school of all places? These questions pounded against the inside of my skull and I felt like everything I'd ever known was a lie.

"I wouldn't blame you if you wanted to walk away right now." The Doctor said slowly. "But I would also appreciate the help if you're willing to give it."

"Will it be dangerous?" I asked with a shaky voice. The Doctor blinked.

"That depends on how aggressive this Ala is."

My shoulders drooped. "What would I have to do?"

The Doctor gave me a small smile of encouragement. "I just need your help destroying this garden; more specifically the giant tree behind me."

I glanced up to the high branches. "If we do this, will all that energy you were talking about get out?" He nodded. "I guess I could do that."

"That's the spirit, Anne Worthing," The Doctor leapt to his feet and offered me a hand up. I narrowed my eyes at it and stood up on my own. The Doctor's smile faltered and he pretended to swat a bug away from his face. "First thing's first; we need to get it here. So here, take this axe." He shoved a heavy axe into my arms. I stared at him with astonishment.

"Where did you get this?"

"I borrowed them from your school's gardening department. Now on the count of three, swing that thing as hard as you can at the trunk. If I'm right, the Ala will come immediately to try and protect its home."

I swallowed and braced my arms against the axe's weight. "I hope you're right."

The Doctor laughed loudly. "Don't worry, Anne. I'm almost never wrong!"

I snorted at his arrogance. The Doctor raised up three fingers; then two; then one.

And with all the strength in my arms I swung the axe at the tree trunk.

_"What in heaven's name do you think you're doing?"_

I spun around to face a very tall man with a balding head and steely gray eyes that were gleaming with rage.

"Mr. Walters?"


	5. 5: The Parting of Ways

"I asked you a question, Miss Worthing," Mr. Walters snarled through his teeth. I stared in astonishment at him. If the Doctor was right, that would mean that my math teacher was the Ala creature.

"Oh, give up the disguise!" The Doctor shouted. "Let that human go and show us your _real _shape!"

Mr. Walters gave us both a smile that made a chill go down my spine. "As you wish, you miserable creature." As if he was having an exorcism, Mr. Walters suddenly bent his spine backwards and screamed shrilly. I flinched away and found myself back-to-back with the oak tree. The Doctor was ignoring me; he was too absorbed in the transformation happening in front of us.

Mr. Walters screamed an unearthly screech and doubled over to show his spine pressing against the back of his sweater vest. Suddenly he righted himself up again and opened his mouth widely. A billow of purplish-gray smog spilled out. But that wasn't the only thing that spilled from his mouth.

A giant, long serpent emerged from Mr. Walters. I felt my stomach twist in knots as the overly large snake coiled itself onto the mossy ground and the purplish-gray smoke with it. It seemed to take forever but eventually the snake was completely out of poor Mr. Walters's body. The man staggered and squinted around the garden before passing out.

"Poor bloke," The Doctor commented lightly. I threw him a sharp glance before facing the Ala.

"You causssed me my huuuman," The Ala hissed angrily. I gulped. The Ala turned its pointed snout towards me. "No matter though; I sssee that there isss a new human for me to enssslave."

The Doctor suddenly stood between the Ala and me. "You will not touch her!"

The Ala hissed furiously. "And who, pray tell, are you to order me around?"

"I'm the Doctor,"

The Ala's slanted eyes widened as much as they could. "The legendary Doctor; what a feassst you'll be!"

The Ala's tail started writhing in the dirt violently. It swung around at us; both of us managed to duck just in time. The Doctor immediately stood back up and faced the Ala without fear.

"Listen to me! If you agree to my terms, that'll be the end of it and we can both walk away from all of this." The Doctor paused and narrowed his eyes at the giant serpent. "Or, I can walk away and you can slither away, I guess."

The Ala screamed in fury. "I will not sssit here and be insssulted by a man who isss sssuposssed to be _dead_!"

"You can take those terms and leave in peace or suffer the consequences. Just remember that what you choose will be your doing." The Doctor warned. A new wave of respect for him rushed over me.

But then the Ala's tail struck out of nowhere and slapped the Doctor hard across the face. I watched in horror as he was slung into the bushes. The Ala gave a hiss that sounded remarkably like a laugh. It started to slither to where the Doctor crashed…

A surge of unknown anger flooded into my chest. I was _not _going to let that _thing _hurt a hair on the Doctor's head! I stood up from where I had been cowering and picked up the axe that was lying down nearby.

"Hey!" I screamed. The Ala screamed back at me and faced me directly. "He gave you a chance!" And without any more hesitation, I swung the axe at the tree as hard as I could.

The Ala lunged at me again. I swung again, the axe going deeper into the bark. The Ala writhed around suddenly and screamed. I glanced quickly at the tree trunk. I could vaguely see wedged in the bark, was a faint glimmer of orange light. I threw the axe over my shoulder again and swung harder.

The tree exploded.

Bursts of orange light streamed out and soared high into the canopy of tree branches. The Ala was screaming and writhing and coiling around and around itself; farther and farther into the dust. It continued this process until there was nothing there. The Ala had disappeared.

"What just happened?" I asked breathlessly. "Where did it go?"

"You destroyed it," The Doctor's voice sounded from farther away. I turned to him. His hair was even more floppy and messy than usual, and he had a smudge of dirt on his cheek. He strolled towards me as if nothing had ever happened.

"An Ala thrives on the stolen energy that they've stored. Once you destroyed the tree, all that life energy escaped. Hence, the Ala collapsed on itself."

"I just killed it," I stated blankly. The Doctor nodded. I huffed and sunk down to the ground. I had just killed a living thing. I knew that it was technically self-defense and it hadn't even been human, but it had been a living creature. And now, because of me, it was gone.

The Doctor stooped down to my level on the floor. His brown eyes were lit with observation. "You know what you did also, right?"

I looked at him. "What do you mean?"

"You may have killed the Ala, but you also saved my life." The Doctor said solemnly. "Without you here, I would be dead right now."

He had a point there. I nodded and sniffed. He offered me a small smile. "C'mon, I want to show you something." The Doctor stood up and stuck his hand out for me. This time, I didn't bother refusing it.

The Doctor led me out of the garden, where the sun was still streaming in through the tree branches. But once we entered the real world the sky turned dark and stars littered the black night. The Doctor glanced up and smiled faintly.

"Tell me Anne, have you ever thought about traveling amongst those stars?"

I stared upwards and nodded. "Doesn't everyone?"

The Doctor smirked and squeezed his grip on my hand. "You sure do like your questions. Can you see any you know?"

I smiled faintly. "I see Orion's Belt; right there." I pointed to the familiar line of stars. "That was the first constellation I learned."

The Doctor smiled and started to pull me away. "C'mon; it's probably late. Won't your parents be wondering where you are?"

My smile faded. "Yeah, I guess." The Doctor and I walked hand in hand down the road towards my house. Just like this morning, we strolled down into the alley, where that blue box still stood. The Doctor squeezed us both through again and dropped my hand once we made it to the other side.

"Well, today was an adventure," I said slowly. I couldn't think of anything else to say. The Doctor smiled and laughed softly.

"I think that might be the understatement of the year," He paused and started chewing on the inside of his mouth. He looked like he wanted to say something, but didn't know how to say it. "If you had the chance to do that every day, would you take it?"

"Of course," I said. "I just did something that hardly anyone will be able to say! If you don't mind me asking, do you do this all the time?"

He nodded. "Not every day, but pretty darn close."

"How though?" I asked curiously, feeling prepared for the answer. "How did you know all of that about the Ala? Are you some kind of government agent or something?"

The Doctor laughed. "Goodness no; well, you could say that I'm not from here."

I frowned at him. "Are you suggesting that you're an alien?"

"I never suggested it. You brought it up. But now that you mention it, yes I am." The Doctor said in a rush. I nodded and for the most part, felt oddly calm.

"Why did I figure that was a possibility?"

The Doctor shrugged. "I'm leaving, you know? I was just wondering, if you wanted to come with me?"

"You mean travel with you; to where?" I asked.

"Anywhere; this blue box here is called the TARDIS. 'Time And Relative Dimension in Space'. It can go anywhere you want in space. And did I mention that it travels in time?"

"You failed to mention that part." I breathed. Just that morning I had wanted any means of escape and adventure. And now it was standing in front of a blue box, staring at me in the face. I stared the Doctor right in the eyes. "Yes,"

"Really?" He asked. I shrugged.

"I might regret it later, but why not?" I said. The Doctor laughed and opened the door to the "TARDIS". I stepped forward, attempting to mentally prepare myself for the adventure of a lifetime.


	6. 6: 1831

"It's bigger on the inside!" The Doctor chimed in as I gaped at the inside of the TARDIS.

A high ceiling towered over our heads and we were standing on a metal see-through floor that showed off the fact that there were _levels_. Giant arches that reminded me of branches swooped out from the corners of the circular room and stretched high up into the ceiling. And in the center of the room was a round panel with a tall cylinder standing directly in the middle of everything.

I turned tail and ran back outside. The TARDIS was just a tiny blue box from the outside. I circled the thing twice and ran back inside. Everything remained the same.

"Having fun?" The Doctor asked from where he watching from the middle panel. Amusement was sparkling in his warm brown eyes. I stared at him.

"This is impossible," I breathed. The Doctor frowned and gave me a skeptical look.

"Nothing's impossible; just highly unlikely."

I made a disbelieving noise that came from the back of my throat and sunk down onto the metal floor panels. Just this morning I was normal. Now I was standing in a _space ship _disguised as a blue box with a complete stranger who claimed to be an alien. I buried my face in my hands. I probably ended up sitting like that for a few minutes before I heard a set of footsteps heading towards me. The Doctor took a seat beside me on the metal panels.

"For the record," He began. "I completely get your slight moment of panic. Your entire world has just been turned upside down and right now you're looking for a tiny bit of stability. I would completely understand if you decided not to travel with me, but you saved my life. And I already said I would take you somewhere. So, how 'bout one trip, hm? One trip just to say 'Thanks for not letting me die'. You can take a chance with me."

I lifted my head and glanced at him. He was smiling earnestly at me. I blinked at him. "Do you promise that nothing will happen to me?"

The Doctor's face melted from one of unusual light-heartedness to one of cold anger. "I can't promise that; but know this, while I'm with you, _nothing_ will harm you. Understand?"

I was slightly shocked by the certain ferocity in his voice when he said that. There was a fire in his eyes that flared when he became angry; I had just witnessed the embers flare into a blazing fire. For that reason alone, I knew that as long as the Doctor was around, he would keep me safe.

"I understand," I said softly. The sudden fierceness that had dominated the Doctor's eyes melted away in the blink of an eye and the warm glow replaced it.

"Good; now come up here and observe." The Doctor sprang to his feet. I scrambled up to follow. He gestured me over to the round panel with all sorts of buttons, screens, switches, and scans that I couldn't even begin to count. The Doctor ran to a dial and started spinning it. "D'you see that big purple lever right beside your foot?"

I glanced down at my feet to see a long, purple lever sticking up at me. "Yeah; do you want me to pull it?"

The Doctor looked scandalized. "Goodness gracious, no! I just thought it was cool and wanted to show you! Now quickly, grab hold to something!"

The closest thing that looked sound was one of the golden branches that jutted out at me a few feet away. I rushed to it and wrapped my arms around it tightly. The Doctor smirked at me before mashing a button on the panel.

On the inside of the tall, glass cylinder were smaller glass tubes. With a loud whirring sound, those smaller glass tubes began to slide up and down. The whirring noise got louder and louder as the tubes picked up speed. The TARDIS rocked back and forth ever so slightly. And, with a sound that reminded me of when you lost the game Pac-Man, the tubes inside the cylinder froze back into their original position and the rocking stopped.

The Doctor strolled over to where I was still clutching the branch. He was trying, and failing, to hide his overwhelming amusement.

"Now that was just mean," I said as I released the golden branch. The Doctor nodded and a burst of laughter came from his lips.

"Oh, you're just a ray of sunshine, aren't you, Anne Worthing?" He laughed once more and threw his large brown coat on. He offered me his arm. "Care for an afternoon stroll, Miss Worthing?"

"Afternoon?" I narrowed my eyes at him, taking his arm anyway. "It was nighttime when we left."

"I did mention time travel, didn't I?" The Doctor grinned cheekily at me. I shook my head at him and allowed him to lead me outside into the world.

The TARDIS was parked on a wide and green pasture. A gray city stood farther away; probably a mile or two away. The Doctor dropped my arm for a moment just to lock the TARDIS up with a key tied to a string. I snorted, causing him to glance up.

"What did I do?"

"Nothing; it's just that the TARDIS is a space ship, yet it needs a tiny key to be locked. Couldn't you just, I don't know, snap your fingers and it lock or something?"

"Not all aliens are little green men, Anne." The Doctor said. He stuffed the key and string back into his pocket and looped his arm around mine again. "Now, d'you have any idea where I brought you?"

I squinted at the oncoming city. "Nope; it doesn't look like anywhere I've ever seen."

"That's because it might not even be. Welcome to Boston, Massachusetts, Anne, during the year of eighteen-thirty-one."

"What happens in eighteen-thirty-one?" I asked, feeling very curious. The Doctor shrugged.

"I don't know; it was the first year that popped into my head. Now c'mon; let's head into town and see what's up."

Nothing in particular was happening, it would appear. We strolled into town and several men in suits nodded their heads politely at us, but other than that we were pretty much ignored. I noticed of few women were giving me scandalized looks. "What's with them?"

The Doctor observed the situation quite fast and started to snort with laughter. I stared at him. "What?"

The Doctor leaned in close to my ear. "Take a look at what you're wearing."

I glanced down at my clothes. At first I didn't see what wrong with it, but then I guessed what the ladies around me thought. I was wearing my school uniform and compared to the other women around me, I looked particularly naked.

"You could've pointed this out," I said through gritted teeth. The Doctor just smirked.

"It honestly didn't cross my mind," He answered. But the way he was smirking to himself told me that he was enjoying this.

"Do you think there's anywhere I could go get changed?" I asked, feeling the blood rush to my face. The Doctor glanced around and nodded at a shop on the corner.

"That looks promising,"

Without waiting for him I stalked off in that direction. After a second I heard the Doctor's sneakered feet padding after me.

The shop was very dusty. Behind a dark wooden counter a middle-aged man sat, looking bored. Racks of hand-me-down dresses lined up the entire store. I spotted a dark-haired man in the far corner of the store. But his back was to me and I didn't get that good a look at him. The store hand coughed.

"How can I help you?" He huffed at me.

"I'm just looking," I replied, flashing him a smile. He stiffened and glowered at me. I awkwardly turned away and started to shift through the mass of old cloth.

A musky scent was rising up from most of the clothes. The Doctor, who had appeared at my elbow, must've smelled it to because he plucked one from the rack and shook it in the air. In reply, a dozen moth balls came flying out of badly stitched pockets.

"Well, isn't that lovely?" The Doctor asked sarcastically. He narrowed his eyes at the store hand. "Haven't you got anything suitable that doesn't reek like a thousand insects?"

The store hand glared at the Doctor. "What we have is what we've got. If you've got a problem with that, you can make yourselves scarce. I've got customers."

"Oh yes, you look absolutely busy at the moment," The Doctor said with a glance around the empty store. I glanced back to where the man in the back was looming. He looked up at me and our eyes made contact for just a second.

"If you've got a problem with my shop you can hit the road!" The store hand yelled. His face had gotten alarmingly red in a short amount of time.

"Ignore him," The man from the back interrupted. He came into the light and I finally got a good look at him. He was probably around the age of twenty-one, maybe twenty-two. A mass of unruly black hair sat atop his head and a small amount of facial hair rested upon his upper lip and chin. His eyes were dark and had a haunted look to them. I had never seen him before in my life, yet I had the overwhelming sense that I had seen him before.

"You mind your own boy!" The store hand snapped at him. "Two strangers are not important enough for a soldier to concern himself with. Oh wait, you're no soldier."

He had said that like it was meant to hurt the man, but the dark-haired man from the back just sneered and spat at the store-hand's feet. He turned back to the Doctor and me and jerked his head for us to follow him out. I risked a glance with the Doctor; he looked just as confused as me. But we followed the stranger anyway, leaving the store hand looking stricken behind us.

Once we were all in the street, the man turned to us. He only glanced and nodded at the Doctor politely, but after that his eyes started consuming my face.

"I must ask, only because I have never seen you before, who are you? I have never seen a maid ever so fair." He asked. I felt my cheeks light up with flame and I ducked my head out of natural response. The Doctor glanced between the two of us quickly and moved to stand between us.

"Hello, sir, I'm the Doctor. This is my companion Anne Worthing. And we must be leaving to find another shop; hopefully a decent one this time."

The man narrowed his eyes at the Doctor. "If you are looking for a decent clothing shop, you won't find one down here in this area of Boston. I could show you where the best ones are, but only if you follow."

I watched the two of them interact. It suddenly looked like the two of them were trying to look more masculine than they really were. I shook my head at both of them and stepped forward to the stranger.

"What's your name?"

He smiled at me and his dark eyes got brighter. "Edgar; Edgar Poe."


	7. 7: Ravens and Fate

I followed Edgar Poe with the doctor, all the while I kept staring dumbstruck at him. Edgar _Allan _Poe! I just met one of the best writers in history! And on top of all that, he thought I was "a fair maiden". The Doctor looked at my awestruck expression and rolled his eyes.

"Don't get too attached now," He said quietly so that Poe wouldn't hear. "We can't stay here that long. I still want to show you something before I drop you off back home."

I turned away from Poe's back to look at the Doctor's face. "I thought you said one trip."

"Yes; one trip for the time part and one trip for the space part; that way you get to see a little of each."

I shrugged at that logic. It was a good enough agreement to go on. But I was already having second thoughts of going home…

My thoughts were interrupted by Poe turning to face both of us. He didn't even look at the Doctor this time. Poe's eyes were all for me.

"I just had a thought."

The Doctor snorted and mumbled under his breath, "That's remarkable." I gave him a sharp look and looked back to Poe.

"There's a ball tonight. How about I take you to my family's to get ready? I think my cousins wouldn't mind lending you a proper gown."

"I'd like that, thank you." I replied politely. Poe smiled widely and offered me his arm. The Doctor stared after us for a moment before trudging along to keep up.

* * *

Poe's family was very happy to see us. He had a brother, Henry Poe, a slim, feeble, young man with dark inexpressive eyes. Edgar's aunt, Maria Clemm, was the lady of the house and she told me sternly that she would lend me one of her favorite gowns. All the while the Doctor stood behind me as a shadow.

"Are you both related?" Maria asked me as we started to march up the stairs to her dressing room. I glanced over my shoulder to where the Doctor was trying to have an animated conversation with Henry.

"No; he's just taking care of me." I replied vaguely. Maria raised her neat eyebrows.

"So you are his ward?"

I thought it over. "In a way; not really, but still."

Maria nodded thoughtfully as we entered a room with a magnificent four poster bed on the far side. Dark wood furniture decorated the room and I found myself wandering over to the one overlooking the window. A silver hairbrush sat on the polished wood.

"Excuse me, Miss Worthing," Maris chimed in through my thoughts. I turned around to see her standing in front of a large and exquisite wardrobe. She opened it and held out a beautiful and pale golden gown. "Do you think that this would be appropriate clothing for the night?"

"It's beautiful," I said softly. Maria smiled at me.

"I shall take that as approval. Please wait here." And with that she left me alone in the room.

I sighed and strode back to the window. It was summer here when in twenty-first century London it had been late winter. What was going on with my parents? I was all the way in the year eighteen-thirty-one and they were sitting at home in two-thousand-thirteen sipping their evening coffee. It was just so…magical.

A pair of dark wings flashed past the window. I blinked as a large, jet-black bird landed on the sill. "You're a raven," I said blankly. The raven cawed loudly at me through the glass. I stared at its beady, black eyes. Something wasn't right here. Weren't birds supposed to be mortally terrified of humans? Yet this raven was staring me down. Suddenly there was a flash of red—

"We're back, Miss Worthing!" Maria Clemm announced as she entered the room. I jumped and turned to face her. I saw that she was joined by an eight year old girl. I quickly glanced over my shoulder back to the window sill. The raven was gone.

"This is my daughter, Virginia Clemm." Maria continued as if she didn't see my obvious discomfort. "She will be nine later this year."

I stared at the girl, remembering. I had once had to recite the poem Annabel Lee to my class in seventh grade. After we had recited and memorized that poem, our teacher had spent several days dissecting the entire poem. We had agreed that Edgar Allan Poe had written the poem about his cousin and wife, Virginia Clemm; who would die of tuberculosis at the age of twenty-four.

"It is nice to make your acquaintance, Miss Worthing." The little girl told me politely. Virginia Clemm was no doubt a beautiful little girl with dark brunette hair and liquid, onyx eyes and pale skin. Yet this life would be taken far too soon. How did she die again? Oh right; she would be playing her piano one evening only to start coughing up blood, a fatal sign of untreated tuberculosis.

"It's nice to meet you too, Virginia." I said. She smiled widely at me and left the room, leaving me feeling like someone just punched a hole in my chest.


	8. 8: A Mother's Broken Heart

The ball was to happen in the Clemms' next door neighbor's house. I found out before getting dressed that the Doctor already left with Henry and Edgar Poe. I just rolled my eyes and allowed Maria to help me dress.

I soon became thankful that I was born in the twenty-first century. Corsets were not fun to wear and I felt like these people were trying to suffocate me. I said that much; it made little Virginia giggle but her mother glanced at me sharply.

"Where did you say you were from again?" Maria asked me with suspicion in her voice. I did some quick thinking.

"Somewhere far away," I answered vaguely. Maria frowned and looked like she didn't believe me. I guess that was why she started lacing the corset strings tighter and harder.

Virginia, on the other hand, looked fascinated. "Can you tell me about it?"

I rolled my eyes in pretend thoughtfulness. "Hm, I don't know. Would you be able to handle it?"

Virginia's eyes got really wide. "I think so."

Maria let go of me to go fetch some other torture device disguised as part of a gown. I leaned down to make myself eye to eye with Virginia. "I live in a place far, far away. Over seas and skies and worlds even. My family lives there, and so do I, but right now I'm just traveling with the Doctor. Maybe someday you can go there to."

"How far away is it?" Virginia asked with wide eyes. I realized that Maria had stopped moving behind me; she was listening.

I looked deep into Virginia's eyes. "Years and years away."

* * *

The ball gown seemed to float off my body. The pale golden color sort of clashed with my dark blond hair, but it was a good kind of clash, Maria told me. To further decorate the dress and my features, Maria lent me a large necklace studded with sapphires, "to make my eyes pop" Maria told me.

Virginia also wanted to help. She advised Maria what to do with my hair, and the end result was a twisted bun that sat on the back of my head and was kept together with a golden chain. I felt as if I was getting ready for a formal. After Maria and I were ready for the ball, Maria tucked Virginia into bed and we started down the street to where the ball was being held.

"I must ask you, Miss Worthing," Maria said into the warm summer night. "Does your mother know where you are?"

I hesitated. "No," I answered honestly.

Maria's jaw stiffened. "Does she even know this Doctor of yours?"

Once again, I decided to answer honestly. "No,"

Maria stopped and turned to face me directly. "You would be wise not to torment your mother so. If she does not know where you are and you say you are years and years away from home, why torture her with images of what could happen to you?"

I looked into Maria's eyes. "I'm sorry but she wouldn't even notice I was gone."

"Are you an only child?" Maria asked fiercely. I nodded. "If you are her only child, Miss Worthing, I can assure you that no decent mother would not notice her daughter's absence for years. After this night, I want you to return to her and go back to wherever you came from."

"Nevermore,"

I looked up at where the unknown voice spoke. A raven was perched atop a lamppost, staring down at us. Was it the same one from the window sill?

"Wretched things," Maria scowled. "Those are the birds of the devil, you know."

"I've heard," I said. That bird just quoted Edgar Allan Poe twenty years before the poem known as The Raven is even published. The raven cocked its head and I could just make out a glimpse of red…

"Let's hurry on inside," Maria said feverishly. With one last glance at the strange bird, I followed her inside.

The Doctor, Edgar, and Henry were all in the lobby of the house when Maria entered. Henry smiled politely as we entered. The Doctor took one look at me and a smile began to play upon his lips. Edgar on the other hand completely gaped at me like I was sent straight from heaven. The thought and the intensity of his gaze was enough to make me duck my head in embarrassment.

"Edgar," Maria said sharply. "Sarah Elmira Royster is just over there." She nodded to a pretty girl with short brown curls. "Would you do her the favor of escorting her into the ball?"

Edgar looked conflicted but nodded to his aunt anyway, but not before glancing at me with longing etched in every aspect of his face. I turned even redder and ducked my head once more. Maria gave me a haughty expression before allowing her eldest nephew to escort her away. The Doctor took the spot at my side.

"Well, family drama never gets old, no matter what century you're in." He said. I giggled and glanced up at him. He hadn't gotten that dressed up for the ball; he was still in his pinstripe suit and long brown coat and he was still wearing the white pair of converse.

"You didn't clean up that much," I said simply. He glanced down at his attire and then back at me.

"Looks like I didn't. Meanwhile you practically transformed. So how does it feel to dress like a marriageable bachelorette from the eighteen hundreds?" The Doctor asked, looking from the necklace to the pale gold dress.

"Honestly, it feels magical." I answered truthfully. The Doctor grinned widely and stuck his arm out for me.

"Shall we enter this party with style?"

I grinned back at him and looped my arm through his. "We shall,"

The ballroom was a large, circular room with a large crystal chandelier dead in the middle of it all. To gain access to this giant room was a grand staircase, like the ones from those movies. A man stood at the top of these stairs, announcing the guests as they arrived. I exchanged a glance with the Doctor and we approached the stairs.

The man glanced us up and down before realizing that he didn't recognize us. "I apologize, but who are you two?" He asked us skeptically.

"I'm the Doctor and this is my companion Anne Worthing." The Doctor replied with a broad grin on his face. The man narrowed his eyes.

"I do not believe a doctor or Worthing was on the list, sir."

The Doctor frowned and reached inside his coat pocket. "That can't be right; I've got the invitation right here." I gave him a sharp glance as he flipped the man a blank piece of paper. I expected the man to kick us out right there, but instead he smiled.

"I apologize again, Doctor. Please enjoy the evening." He turned away from us as the Doctor shoved the paper back inside his pocket. "Now introducing, the Doctor and his companion, Anne Worthing!"

We ascended the steps down to the main floor where we were met up with Edgar and his family. I turned scarlet as Poe grabbed my hand and placed a kiss upon my knuckles. Maria pursed her lips tightly and coughed.

"Edgar, go ask Miss Royster to dance. I'm sure she'd enjoy it." Maria ordered her nephew. Poe glanced at her before whispering to me that we'd talk later. Maria glared at me with something that resembled deep dislike. The Doctor stifled a laugh and led the way away from Maria Clemm's wrath.


	9. 9: The Wraith

I had never been to an actual party before, and I was completely happy to see that my first one was going to be a fancy ball in eighteen-thirty-one. People stopped whatever they were doing to nod in our direction or to comment on my attire. I don't think my face ever strayed far the color red.

"Would you care for a dance, Miss Worthing?" The Doctor asked me with a sly grin on his face. I laughed and nodded. He led me out onto the dance floor as the band started to play a waltz-like song.

"I think I must warn you that I have no experience with dancing at all." I said quietly. The Doctor smirked.

"That's alright; I taught a few people to dance myself. Now follow my lead."

He started stepping in patterns of three, pulling me along so that I could follow him. "Good; now go backwards." He took three steps forward as I went backward. The Doctor laughed gleefully. "You liar you said you couldn't dance."

"I don't think this is considered dancing," I said through a laugh. The Doctor laughed along with me and led me farther into the dance floor. The center of the room was packed with others dancing in their fancy ball gowns and suits and as I glanced around, I couldn't get over the surreal feeling.

I was years and miles away from home with a time-traveler. I had destroyed a creature called an Ala and now I was just hanging out with Edgar Allan Poe. If I closed my eyes, I could still pretend that I was back in dreary London, but once they opened, I found myself with the oddest and the most amazing person in the world.

The song ended and the Doctor and I started heading for the edge of the ball room. I felt like my head was spinning. Once we were out of the way of the other party-goers, the Doctor grinned widely at me. "So, Anne Worthing, any questions you'd like to ask before we head out?"

"That paper you showed the man at the door," I started with the first question that came into my mind. "What was it? When I looked at it, it was completely blank."

He smiled. "I was wondering when that would come up. It's called physic paper; it shows whoever I'm showing it to whatever I want them to see."

I shook my head. Then I came up with another question. "That Ala, it recognized you. What did it mean by someone who was supposed to be dead?"

The Doctor's face darkened dramatically. "That's a question left for the TARDIS." I was about to object when someone interrupted me.

"Nevermore,"

I stared up to where the loud, caw came from. The same raven from outside was perched on the chandelier. But this time it was different; this time the raven's eyes didn't just flash red, they glowed red.

"What," The Doctor said in a hushed voice. The raven cawed even louder.

"Nevermore!"

"What," The Doctor repeated, his eyes getting crinkled at the corners. The raven opened its beak wider.

_"Nevermore!"_

_"What?" _

"Enough with the 'whats'!" I said loudly. The Doctor glanced at me before staring at the large bird. Several guests were staring and pointing. I squinted. "Doctor, does that bird look like it's getting bigger?"

The Doctor squinted at the bird and his brown eyes widened. "We need to get everyone out, _now_!" He turned away to start forcing people out. But just then the raven screamed and an explosion of feathers filled the air.

People screamed all over the room. I was frozen; caught staring at what creature the raven had just turned into.

The raven seemed to grow to the size of a large dog and was now a monster of jet-black feathers and dark smoke and embers. The eyes burned blood red and its beak seemed to have turned razor sharp. It screamed as it leapt down from its high perch to the marble floor below.

"Anne!" I turned my head just in time to see Edgar and his family run up. His dark eyes were gleaming with fright. "We've got to get out of here!"

"Wait; we can't leave without the Doctor!" I yelled. Edgar stared at me for a moment, as if contemplating whether or not to argue. But then he nodded and turned around to Henry.

"Get Aunt Maria out of here and keep her and Virginia safe."

Henry looked like he was about to disagree but then he grinned, hugged his brother and turned to me. "It has been an honor to meet you, Miss Worthing." And then he disappeared with Maria Clemms.

"Anne, where is the Doctor?" Poe asked. I turned around blindly on the spot. The Doctor had vanished from view. A terrifying scream pierced the air as the raven-monster-thing took flight once more and landed on the railing of the stairs.

Just then the Doctor ran into view. And he was heading straight for the beast. "There he is!" I cried and guided Poe to where the Doctor now crouched behind a fallen statue.

"Doctor, what is that creature?" Poe asked the Doctor the second we arrived at his side. The Doctor glanced at us briefly before rushing into a tidal wave of information.

"That creature is what I believe to be a wraith: a demon that possesses the mortal bodies of mortal animals to do its bidding."

"And what is its bidding?" I asked nervously.

"To consume as much mortal spirits as possible." The Doctor said in a daze, almost to himself. "That's why he would attack this ball; the amount of edible spirits must've been too good to pass up."

"How do we get rid of it?" I asked.

The doctor sighed. "With wraiths, communicating with it would be pointless to try and negotiate. There's no other choice; we have to kill it."

I thought back to the Ala I have apparently destroyed just a few hours ago. "Will it be the same way as getting rid of the Ala?"

The Doctor shook his head, causing his floppy brown hair to swing around. "No; an Ala's power is kept safe in a piece of nature. A wraith keeps its power in its mortal body. We have to kill the bird."

"What are you two going on about?" Poe asked us. I suddenly remembered he was there. I turned to him.

"Nothing; inside stuff."

"I want to help, Doctor. Please let me." Poe told the Doctor firmly. The Doctor glanced over his shoulder to Poe and eyed him up and down.

"It'll be dangerous."

Poe glanced at me. "That's alright. Now what can I do?"

"We need to pierce the wraith's heart; that's the only way to guarantee that one is dead. D'you got that?"

Poe nodded and without one backwards glance, he turned tail and disappeared into the crowd. I turned back to the Doctor. "Now what do we do?"

"We distract that thing and make sure that Poe has a clear shot. Now follow my lead." The Doctor suddenly leapt out of our hiding place and charged into the fray. The wraith screamed and hopped into the air.

The wraith's wingspan was about the length of the Doctor's gangly body, so it flew up and past him without trouble. I widened my eyes as I realized that the wraith was heading directly towards me. I quickly gathered the skirts from my gown and dodged the wraith's razor sharp beak. I heard a long tear as its beak came into contact with Maria's ball gown.

"Anne, distract it!" The Doctor called to me. I looked up to see the wraith turn around in the middle of flight and dive towards me again. It flew right past the chandelier.

I spun out of the way from its beak but its wings caught me right on the side. The wraith started souring upwards while I looked at the Doctor. "Doctor, the chandelier!" I pointed.

The Doctor grinned broadly as he caught up to my thoughts. "Anne Worthing, you're a genius! Keep that wraith underneath the chandelier!"

"Easier said than done," I muttered to myself as the wraith took another dive at me. I ran out to directly under the chandelier and forced myself to stand still. The wraith doubled back and started advancing towards me, talons first.

Everything seemed to happen at once. The chandelier snapped and started falling faster than I thought it would. The wraith screamed as it closed in on me. And I was crashed out of the way of the falling chandelier.

There was a bone-rattling scream and the sound of crumbling metal. I peeked through my closed eyes to see the chandelier crushing the wraith. I glanced up to find Poe gasping for breath beside me and the Doctor was running up to us.

There was a loud, hissing noise and I watched as the wraith dissolved, and with a shower of feathers, vanished from sight. I stood up and helped Poe up too.

"Did it die?" Poe asked. The Doctor sighed and shook his head.

"It just dissolved; it'll be back. Give it time, they always come back." The Doctor paused and jerked his head to the exit. "C'mon; let's head out."


	10. 10: Worth It

We all marched down the street and past the Poe residence. We strode through the part of town we had arrived in and into the fields where the TARDIS was parked. The Doctor jumped ahead to enter the TARDIS. I made a move to follow him but to my surprise, Poe grabbed my hand.

"I'm never going to see you again, correct?" He asked. His dark eyes were filled with pain. I smiled sadly.

"I'm sorry," I said and glanced back at the TARDIS. How much could I say without giving anything away? "Don't stop writing." I settled on. Poe's eyes widened but I ran across him. "Yes, I know that you write. And, please, don't stop. Believe me, you're going to become one of the best writers there ever was."

Poe returned my sad smile and folded my hands in his. "I think we'll meet again, Miss Worthing; in this world or the next. I won't forget you." I opened my mouth to say something but next thing I knew Poe had pressed his mouth against mine. At first I was a little too shocked to respond to anything, but finally I just closed my eyes and kissed him back.

When he released me I turned away and disappeared inside the TARDIS. I found myself face to face with the Doctor, his head resting in his hands and looking quite curious.

"So how'd our dear Edgar take your little goodbye?"

"Oh shut up," I mumbled and strode past him. The Doctor smirked and bounded past me to the control panel. He started mashing random buttons into the panel.

"Out of curiosity, did you ever tell Poe your full name?" The Doctor asked. I narrowed my eyes at him.

"No; why do you ask?"

The Doctor frowned thoughtfully and jumped away from the control panel to a loose metal panel in the flooring. From the extra space he pulled out a dusty chest that looked like it hadn't been touched for years. He quickly broke the lock and opened the chest to reveal even dustier books. I watched him as he ran his fingers over the spines and mumbling thoughtfully to himself. Then he went, "Aha!" and yanked out a thin leather bound book and forced it into my hands.

"One of the original copies," He stated simply, as if that would clear everything up. "Go on and open it. You'll figure it out."

I glanced at him before opening the book to the title page. It was a collection of Edgar Allan Poe's greatest works. The Doctor raised his eyebrows at me before strolling casually back to the control panel. I flipped through the table of contents before seeing the poem I was positive the Doctor wanted me to see.

"Annabel Lee," I breathed. The Doctor continued to pretend that he wasn't eavesdropping. I sat down cross-legged on the metal panels and started to read the poem for what felt like the first time.

_A wind blew out of a cloud, chilling my beautiful Annabel Lee; So that her highborn kinsman came and bore her away from me, to shut her up in a sepulcher in this kingdom by the sea._

"That's a way to put the TARDIS," I said quietly. The Doctor swooped in a started reading over my shoulder. "And it looks like you're the highborn kinsman."

"Never thought of myself that way," The Doctor said, taking a seat beside me. He was looking at me seriously. "Are you still up for just one trip? D'you want to go home?"

I blinked at him. "Is it always like this? It seems to me that everywhere you go, trouble always seems to find you."

The Doctor nodded. "That's pretty much me. I can't promise you that we'll be safe all the time. But I can promise you that no matter what happens, I will protect you. That's a promise."

I found myself staring him down; staring into the warm brown abyss. I sighed. "Just answer one question for me." The Doctor stiffened; he already knew what I was about to ask. "What are you, and why did that Ala say you are supposed to be dead?"

That's how I learned about the Time Lords and the great Time War. The Doctor told me of Gallifrey, his home planet and how it had burned. He was the last of his kind. I saw that he was on the verge of tears once he had finished. Without thinking I reached forward and squeezed his hand. The Doctor glanced sharply at me and held my gaze. I needed him to realize that he wasn't alone anymore.

There was a sudden shift in the TARDIS's gentle movement. The Doctor jumped to his feet and dragged me with him to the panel and he stared at a monitor that I had never noticed before. He looked back at me excitedly.

"Remember how I told you I wanted to show you some space?" He asked in a hurry. I nodded. He bounded past me to the front doors. "Well here's something I think you'll like." He opened the doors.

In front of me looked to be a star, but the TARDIS was parked beside it. Swirls of green and pink and orange cascaded around the TARDIS and floated gently around our faces. I stared in wonder at the smooth swirls of the stardust as it got closer and closer.

"Watch out there," The Doctor warned gently as he caught me by the scruff of the neck right before I fell out of the TARDIS. I laughed and was quickly hypnotized by the star again.

There was a loud and cooing bellow coming from below us. I glanced down to find a lilac beast that was the size of an ocean liner just below us. As I stared closely I saw that inside its lilac skin was glimmers of sky blue and bright green. The creature let out another mournful, yet hopeful, sounding cry.

"What is that?" I asked quietly, not wanting to disrupt the perfect balance of the scene in front of me. The Doctor craned his neck out of the TARDIS while keeping his grip on me. He smiled.

"Star-whales; they're extinct now but I took us back far enough to see a whole herd it looks like."

"Herd?"

I looked down even farther to see that beyond our star-whale there were dozens of star-whales. I laughed softly at the sight of them. A smaller one floated right up to the TARDIS and batted its deep violet eyes at me; eyes the size of tires.

"I think its saying hello," The Doctor said in a slightly dreamy voice. The small star-whale sped up and passed the TARDIS and dove straight into where the most stardust was forming. The stardust cloud puffed out silently and evaporated into a million tiny pieces of crystal. The crystals floated gently into the TARDIS and the small star-whale cried with its conflicted voice.

I stared out at the star and watched as the star-whales basked in the eerie glow of the green and pink and orange swirls. I discovered then that the universe was dark and scary and sometimes, it could be evil. But with the last Time Lord at my side, I was able to see the gentle and beautiful side of the universe to. And that fact made my decision to stay all the brighter.


	11. 11: To Be Chosen

"Where are we now?" I asked as I stepped out of the TARDIS.

The Doctor came out behind me and frowned. "Not sure, oh well, guess we'll find out!" He turned around to lock up the TARDIS. I took a few steps away from him and stared around at the scenery.

The TARDIS had parked itself on a very stony beach. Dark blue waves crashed into the black boulders that were on the edge of the shore and the thick foam it left rested peacefully for a moment before the surf swept it away again. Seagulls screeched from the sky and the air had an overall scent that reeked of salt and rotting seaweed.

The Doctor appeared at my side to look around as well. "Judging by the scenery I'd say that we're in Greece, maybe."

"Just exactly _when _in Greece, though?" I asked him with a raised eyebrow. He raised his own eyebrows at me and looked impressed.

"You're catching on fast, Worthing." The Doctor said approvingly. I beamed at the thought of the Doctor's approval.

The praise was put on hold though, as the scream of a woman pierced the air. The Doctor and I glanced at each other before charging in the direction of the sound. "I think we found out why we're here!" I called over my shoulder to the Doctor. I heard him laugh as we tore across the beach and onto a long plain with a tiny village in the center.

The village seemed to me a speck in the gritty landscape. The wood of the buildings were stained dark from the heavy salt in the air and the tall grass that surrounded the small village looked to be coated in mildew. Thank goodness there was a thin road of tightly packed dust and sand that we could travel on; otherwise we would've had to run through the grimy grass.

The Doctor and I found the source of the screaming without any difficulty. There was a heavyset woman kneeling in the village square, her face blotchy red with the pressure of her screams and the tears pouring down her face. A thin man who I assumed was her husband had his arms wrapped around the woman's shoulders and was trying to stay calm, but I could see the fear etched into his face as well.

The Doctor wasted no time striding into the center of the group of villagers and calling for attention. The villagers eyed him up and down before shutting up their frightened murmurs.

"That's better," The Doctor said brightly. "Now, first thing's first, I'm the Doctor and that seventeen year old over there is Anne Worthing, my companion. Secondly, why is this woman crying?"

"Are you daft?" A wormy faced man standing near me asked. "There was a serpent in the village!"

He said this as if it was the worst news anyone could ever announce. And the effect was shocking. People all around started wailing and freaking out. I narrowed my eyes as a pair of twins behind started clinging to each other and bawling their eyes out. I glanced up at the Doctor; he looked just as confused as I felt.

"What does that mean?" The Doctor asked loudly over everyone's terrified cries. No one really heard him. I rolled my eyes and brought my hand up to my lips and whistled a high-pitched siren call that caused everyone nearby to cover their ears.

"Thank you," I said sarcastically. I stepped forward until I stood beside the Doctor. "Now, what does a snake being in the village mean?"

There was a long hesitation before one of the twin girls stepped forward until he was right in front of me. "It means one of us will die,"

I glanced at the Doctor. The corners of his eyes got crinkled and he looked as if he was thinking hard. "How? Why would a snake here make that big an omen?"

"It means that she wants us dead," The little girl said again.

"Who's she?" I asked. The Doctor glanced sharply at me but leaned forward towards the kid.

"The mistress down by the beach; she's the one who commands the serpents and where they go and who dies down there." The girl paused before sniffing. "My big sister was the first to be chosen."

Without thinking I grabbed the little girl and hugged her. There was no hesitation before she wrapped her arms around my shoulders and hugged me back, tightly. I released her and held her out at arm's length. "What's your name?"

"Euryale," She said in a thin voice. "My identical sister is Stheno." I nodded and glanced back at the twin mentioned. Both girls had thick dark brown curls and pale skin and round, blue eyes. I stood back up to my full height and turned towards the Doctor.

"Do you think we can help these people?" I asked. The Doctor shrugged.

"Well," He said in that way of his. "That depends on who was supposedly chosen. Remember that we must be in ancient Greece; these people are big on the whole Zeus rules your world mumbo jumbo. If we go against their traditions, who's to stop these people from sacrificing us to their so-called gods?"

"But I'm alive in two-thousand-thirteen; how could I die in ancient times?" I asked. The Doctor sighed.

"You can still die in the past,"

I nodded and glanced around at the crowd of villagers. Whatever this woman was doing, it was _terrifying _these people. I wanted to help.

"Who did this snake choose to die?" The Doctor asked. The wormy faced man stepped forward.

"No one yet; it had only just arrived when you both showed up."

"How do you know when someone's chosen?" I asked. Just at that moment I felt something strong coil and tighten around my ankle. My heart started to accelerate as I glanced down to my foot. I gasped and stiffened.

A thick, dark black snake had coiled itself all around my ankle. As I continued staring at it, it raised its pointed head and wrapped itself around tighter. There was a snort and I looked up to see the wormy faced man looking at the serpent with a relieved smile on his face.

"That's how you know,"


	12. 12: Rescue Me

"I'm not letting you face whatever's down there by yourself!"

"Don't worry," I assured the Doctor. "If I'm not out in an hour you have my permission to barge in and sweep me off my feet." I was completely faking the air of confidence. On the inside, I was trembling.

The Doctor narrowed his eyes at me. "I'm not convinced. That snake down there knew we were coming and chose _you _specifically to come here. D'you honestly think I'm going to ignore that?"

"No, but whoever is down there I can see what they want. I'll just negotiate my way out."

The Doctor sighed and shook his head at me. He leaned past me again to stare down into the pit.

Farther down the beach from where the TARDIS was parked, a giant hole in the face of a cliff loomed over the pair of us. You couldn't see in any farther than five feet into the darkness of the cave. The Doctor had already pulled out a flashlight from the depths of his coat pockets, but not even the light could penetrate the pitch black wall. The black snake that had led the way to the cave was coiled on top of a boulder and staring at me with slanted, onyx eyes.

The Doctor looked like he was in deep thought. Finally he turned to me with a sigh. "What d'you have on you?"

I reached for the leather purse that was slung around my left shoulder and rested on my right hip. I started pulling out its contents while the Doctor watched with focused eyes. By the end of it, I had my wallet filled with a few crumbled dollar bills, sunglasses, an American quarter, a pen that was running out of ink, a few ponytail holders, and one wrinkled gum wrapper. The Doctor nodded and told me to put it all back.

"I'm coming in after you in thirty minutes," He said. He sounded angry with himself. "If you're not back within thirty minutes exactly, I'm running in there after you, got that?"

"I do," I said. There was an awkward pause where we sized each other up, but then I threw my arms around his neck and hugged him as tightly as I could. There wasn't even a break before he hugged me back. When he released me, I could feel his burning brown eyes on me as I descended into the darkness.

Oddly enough, I was only in the darkness for a few steps before a sudden light shone from the roof. I stared up at it to see that some eerie, blue light was shining at the top of the cave. I turned around to see the mouth of the cave with the Doctor craning his neck, trying to see inside. I raised my arms and waved wildly at him, but he didn't even respond. He couldn't see me.

There was a loud and angry hiss from my feet and I looked down to see the same black snake that had chosen me was slithering by. It pointed its narrow head at me and made a wild gesture with it by jerking it forwards. It wanted me to follow it.

It took some time but I managed to follow the snake far into the cave, which was kept lit by the weird light above. My shadow was lengthened three times its normal size as we traveled farther from where I could see the Doctor trying to spot me.

There was a smaller cave at the end of the main cavern and the snake wasted no time slithering into it. I glanced over my shoulder to where the Doctor was still waiting. Thirty minutes, I thought, I only had thirty minutes…

This tunnel was not lit by any mystic light from the ceiling. I could barely see a light at the end of it, but I had to take tiny steps to avoid stepping on the snake. When we reached the end of this tunnel, I found that this cavern was dimly lit by what could possibly be natural light. I saw immediately that there were so many different shadows in this cavern. I stared around in horror as my brain started making connections to what little I knew about Greek mythology.

Statues littered the entire cavern; statues of different people in different positions. One was of a woman who was kneeling and looked to be trying to cover her face with her hands. There was a man with spiky hair who had his hands extended, as if trying to push something away from him. On and on these statues went, as far as I could see. Thoughts of snakes and statues wandered into my mind and I wasted no time slapping my hands over my eyes and shutting them as tight as I possibly could.

"So you have heard of me?" A silky smooth voice came from just over my shoulder. I yelped and jumped forward as far as I could. But I didn't land properly and I ended up crashing down to my knees and thighs. I cried out in pain but kept my hands held tightly across my eyes. A loud, slithering sound echoed around the cavern.

"I'm so sorry," The silky voice said. She was somewhere above me. "I didn't mean to frighten you with the snake, but I don't think there is no way to receive help anymore."

"Help?" I stood up as carefully as I could with my eyes still tightly closed. "Why do you need help?"

There was a soft giggle from my left. I turned around slowly towards it, but a massive slithering noise sounded from right behind me as I turned. Fear fluttered in my chest; she was playing games with me.

"Why don't you just face me head on? Why are you hiding?"

"I do not wish to petrify you, as the others have been petrified." She answered from somewhere to my far right. Instincts told me to stop moving around and just hold still, so that's what I did.

"Tell me your name," I demanded in a shaky voice. I could faintly hear the sound of scales brushing roughly against stone.

"You seem to already know it," She said sadly. "What do you _think _it is?"

I swallowed the fear gathering in my throat. "Is your name Medusa?"

There was a dry laugh from right behind me. "Whoever told you that told you correct. Yes; I am Medusa, known as the queen of the serpents, and I have been calling for help for decades without any true response. That is why I need you, Anne Worthing of Burbank."


	13. 13: Shattered Ones

My heart thudded even faster than it already was. I spun around quickly with my hands still on my eyes to where I had last heard her voice. "How do you know my name?" I asked in a shaky voice.

There was a pause. "The snakes told me."

"No really, how did you know?" I asked again. I could feel my body start to noticeably tremble. Sweat started to break out on my brow.

"I speak truly. When I was a little girl, my parents took me to the temple of Athena and the sacred snakes at her alter came to me as I prayed. They flicked their tongues into my ears and whispered to me. They promised me the gift of prophecy and I received it. After that I devoted my life to the goddess of wisdom. But she has scorned me when I needed her most."

I faced the direction where her voice was coming from. I knew the myth of Medusa well enough; enough to get me through my Ancient World history class in eighth grade. All I really knew was that the goddess Athena had cursed Medusa into turning into the beast she was now. Everything else was just a blur.

"Why do you need _me _though?" I asked. "Out of everyone to possibly ask, you choose me; why?"

"You are not from this place. My snakes tell me that you are from a place that is ages away, across the sea and over skies. If someone that powerful can find their way here, why can they not help me?"

That logic seemed to fit, I thought. A new question came to mind. "How am I supposed to help you when I can't even see you?"

There was a long pause; apparently Medusa hadn't thought this through. There was a sudden, drawn out hiss that sounded from somewhere in front of me; where Medusa was supposed to be standing. She made a noise that sounded like approval.

"The guide you arrived with, he says that there is a device in your bag that will help my cause."

My purse? I reached down with one hand and kept the other hand over my eyes. The purse was pretty much empty; the biggest thing in it was the sunglasses. Wait a minute…

With a careful hand, I reached inside the bag and pulled out the dark sunglasses. There was another long hiss. "That is it, he says." Medusa confirmed.

"How are these supposed to help?" I asked. My question was answered by echoing silence. The sunglasses were cold in my hands. What exactly did that myth say again? If Medusa's eyes met yours than you would be turned to stone. But if they were blocked by something…

"I have an idea, but I need you to come over here where I can put these on your face." I said calmly. There was an instant uproar of spitting and hissing.

"Ignore my locks; stay there." Medusa said. I waited nervously as the slithering sound crept closer and closer to where I stood frozen. Then I could literally feel her presence directly in front of me.

"Okay then," I said, swallowing to satisfy my dry throat. "Now close your eyes."

"What for?"

"Don't argue or I won't be able to help." I said. "Let me know when they're closed." There was a slight pause.

"They are; proceed." I peeked through my fingers slowly and recoiled at what I saw.

I had been stupidly imagining someone with the normal body of a human female, even with all the slithering around. What I saw instead had the upper body of a human and the lower body of a snake, which explained Medusa having to slither around to talk to me. Her tail was probably ten feet long and was as thick as a medium-sized dog and was as black as a starless night. The upper half was human, but where flesh was missing there was dark green scales instead. Sprouting from her head were several dark black serpents, all of them writhing around and flashing fangs at me and coiling and uncoiling themselves around Medusa's face.

I stared at Medusa's face. It was the most human thing about her. You could tell that she had once been very beautiful; I could almost see dark brunette hair instead of angry snakes. I quickly remembered the glasses in my hand and carefully settled it on her face. The snakes hissed at being poked at but curled around the glasses, as if to secure their spot there. I took a step back from Medusa after my work; it seemed sort of silly to see one of the most ferocious creatures in mythology wear modern day sunglasses.

"Can I look now?" Medusa's question snapped me out of my amused thoughts. I swallowed nervously and gave her the okay.

At first I couldn't tell if her eyes were open or not. But then a wide, white smile broke across her face and she laughed, truly laughed. I noticed fleetingly that her teeth were pointed into small fangs.

"This is the first time in decades that I've been able to actually _look _at a person! And you're looking _back_ at me! This is a miracle, Anne Worthing!"

I laughed along with her. Her smile got even bigger. "I must thank you. I know just how to! Follow me, Anne Worthing!" Before I could even object Medusa slithered lightning fast by me and disappeared somewhere behind me. I was left with no choice other than to follow.

The cavern went deeper and deeper and the farther we got, the more statues crowded around us. I forced the rising bile in my throat down into my stomach and put on a brave face. Medusa coiled into a large pile of scales and she pointed a clawed hand to somewhere farther into the gloom of the cavern. It took a moment for my eyes to adjust but the silvery glow from the pond was pretty easy to shape out.

"What is this place?" I asked in wonder.

"I do not fully know. The serpents guided me here after Athena cast me down." Her voice got thicker and full of pain when she mentioned Athena.

"What happened to you? I want to know."

Medusa gazed at me through the glasses and sighed. "If you are to see, you must trust me in what I'm to do."

I stiffened; what was she planning on doing exactly? But I figured then that if she wanted me dead, she wouldn't have bothered with the glasses. So I nodded stiffly.

Medusa slithered closer, too close. The snakes that framed her face went silent and I was frozen as they stared intently at me.

"Close your eyes, Anne Worthing." Medusa ordered gently. I hesitated but did as I was told. There was a long moment of silence before I felt something tickling my ears.

The snakes were licking my ears! I wanted to recoil at the idea of it, but I found myself frozen to the ground. As they continued with the entirely odd process, light started swirling through my eyelids. What was happening? There was a sudden blinding flash and I was forced to open my eyes. Instead of seeing the green face of Medusa and her serpent locks, I was inside a grand, white temple.

"What just happened?" I asked aloud. At the sound of my voice, two people walked into the pearly white temple. One was a middle-aged woman with wispy brunette hair and a strict and wrinkled face. The other was a girl who looked about fourteen years old. The hair on the back of my neck stood up when I realized that the girl was Medusa.

She was gorgeous. Medusa's hair was dark brown that seemed to give off a natural glow. Her face was pale and there wasn't a blemish on her round face. Her eyes were large and were bright blue speckled with flecks of green; like ponds with some lily pads floating around. I blinked several times and struggled to wrap my head around how Medusa had gone from this to what she was now.

"Now Medusa," The older woman said sternly. "Tonight you will keep vigil for the goddess, Athena. No disruptions, and above all, you must not speak. If you break the sacred silence, no one will be able to save you from her wrath."

"I understand," Medusa said in a clear voice that sounded a thousand times more innocent and lighter than her voice now. I raised my eyebrows at what the woman had said as she turned away to leave; that seemed like an unreasonably high price just to become a priestess.

I followed Medusa to the huge alter of Athena. The younger girl stared up at the goddess's face in what looked like pure wonder. I shook my head, still not understanding. What was about to happen here?

A dry, heaving gagging sound sounded from nearby. I spun around in alarm with Medusa and we both saw a fairly large man staggering towards us. I could smell the alcohol on him from here; he was severely drunk.

"Hey there, girly," The man said in a heavily slurred voice. Medusa opened her mouth to say something but she quickly shut it again. I went cold as I remembered what the priestess had said: it was forbidden to speak during the vigil.

"Do you got any water?" The man asked. His beady eyes narrowed sloppily and eyed Medusa up and down. "Who needs water? I got myself a girly right here." He started for Medusa with lust in his eyes.

Medusa backed up against the monument of Athena as the man pressed his body up against her. I leapt forward and tried to swat him away from her, but my hands just phased right through his shoulders. I felt all the air in my lungs disappear as I discovered the awful truth; I couldn't help Medusa, and now I was going to be forced to watch her get raped.

I turned away from the scene as quickly as I could. I slammed my hands hard against my ears, anything to block out the sounds. But it didn't matter, Medusa's screams flooded into my ears and I felt tears well up in my eyes.

There was a sudden crack of lightning and I stared upward. We were indoors, how could there be lightning? I watched in horror as storm clouds gathered around the head of Athena's statue and white forks of lightning stabbed down from the sky and hit the marble floor, blackening and cracking the white tiles.

"Athena, have mercy on me!" Medusa screamed. She knelt down to the floor and pressed her forehead to the ground. The man had fixed himself and was backing away from the statue. I glanced up to Athena's face; her eyes were glowing…

A shower of white lightning struck Medusa head on. I covered my ears again as her howls echoed around the temple. What I saw was like watching a slow motion movie on trees growing.

Slowly, her skin went from milky white to dark green scales; her legs morphed together in what reminded me of something I had seen from a horror movie and they extended, forming the long black tail. Medusa's nose flattened itself against her face and her eyes went from that lovely blue to blazing yellow with slits for pupils. And lastly, her hair braided and thickened and created the serpents that framed her face. And as suddenly as it appeared, the storm clouds faded away into nothing.

Medusa looked up and peered around her. For a brief moment, she looked hopeful; Athena had spared her life. But as she realized what she had become, I felt my heart break for her.

"What just happened?" The drunkard yelled from behind us. I felt my heart drop as Medusa turned around to look at him. He had just signed his death sentence.

It could've happened in seconds or minutes, I was too horrified to turn away. First, his eyes turned to stone, and it quickly spread to his face and neck and down his body. Next thing I knew, there was a perfect statue of Medusa's rapist standing before us. Medusa's screaming as she realized what she had done was the last thing I heard before the scene evaporated and I was back in the cavern.

I hadn't realized I had been crying until a snake brushed the tear off my face.


	14. 14: My Doctor

"Do you think you can help me?"

I turned to Medusa. From behind the large sunglasses, her face was etched with hope. It only made me feel guilty.

"I'm, not sure if I can," I said quietly. The snakes on Medusa's head hissed softly.

"What do you mean?" Medusa asked. "I'm positive that you can help me. The snakes whispered it to me—"

"Then the snakes lied, Medusa!" I said firmly. Medusa looked mortified. "I can't do anything for you. I don't even know what you want me to do!"

"You have been granted the Sight, Anne Worthing." Medusa whispered. I narrowed my eyes at her.

"What are you talking about? What sight?"

"The serpents licked your ears. They've cleaned away all earthly elements, which will allow you to learn things others can only dream about."

I stared at her. If it had been anyone else, I would've called them crazy and would've walked away. I wouldn't believe them. But I was in the middle of ancient Greece talking to the _mythical_ monster named Medusa. I was in no position to call anyone crazy.

"What do you mean?"

"The snakes licked my ears when I was young. I was granted the ability to understand them. It is a common ability. The other power granted by the snakes is the Sight; you can now see the past, the present, and very rarely, the future."

So I was a physic now?

Medusa stiffened suddenly and spun around to face the entrance. "Someone is inside my cavern, Anne Worthing. Someone angry…"

My heart leapt when I remembered that the Doctor should be halfway in this cavern by now. If Medusa was truly threatened, I didn't doubt that she would whip off those glasses and the doctor would become another statue in her cavern. There was no way I was going to let that happen.

"That's my friend, Medusa!" I exclaimed and stood in front of her. "He's the one who brought me to this place. Let me go and calm him down; he might be able to help as well."

"The snakes did not speak of a _man _trying to help." Medusa hissed quite like a snake. I felt pity well up inside me; she was still terrified of men.

"He's not like the one who helped make you like this, I swear. He's a doctor; he lives for this kind of stuff." At least I was sure that he did.

"I do not believe that this man has had any sort of medical training." Medusa said suspiciously after a pause of snakes hissing. Did she just figure out who I was talking about? I made a mental note to ask her later.

"Please trust me, Medusa. I swear to God that he isn't like any other man you've ever met. I need you to know that he'll drive himself insane trying to figure out a way to help you. He'll do that for _anyone _who needs him, whether they know that they need him or not."

Medusa still looked terrified, but there was now a small flicker of hope in her scaly face. I felt my heart well up twice its normal size. Where in the hell had those words come from? Images started swimming in front of me.

First there was an older looking man with white hair and a kind, wrinkled face. As soon as he disappeared, another man took his place. This one had dark black hair and questioning eyes. A third man with curly blond hair and big blue eyes. The fourth man had wild brunette hair and a scarf that looked to be taller than me. He evaporated before my eyes and was replaced by a fifth man with wavy blond hair and a fancy, cream-colored suit.

Then there was a man with a brightly colored coat and wild, dirty blond hair. I was just starting to question his fashion sense when he faded away and turned into a man who wore an old-fashioned hat and had dark brown, almost black eyes. Then he left and dissolved into a new man with long, feathery-looking brown locks and a narrow face. He evaporated quickly and formed into someone with a shaved head and a large leather jacket with a brooding face and slightly large ears. When he disappeared, I sucked in my breath at who took his spot.

The Doctor looked just as he did the last time I saw him. Floppy brown hair that fell slightly into his eyes; a white and freckled face that crinkled up when he smiled; big brown eyes that could either burn like a raging fire or glow like embers. To me he wasn't just _the _Doctor, this was _my _Doctor.

* * *

**A/N: Hello world! I do hope that you all are enjoying this story; I know that I'm enjoying writing it. Either way, while I was writing this chapter, I started getting curious.**

**The first Doctor I watched on TV was Nine (praise the Lord for Netflix) so to me he'll always be my Doctor. So with that out there, I'm curious as to who YOUR first Doctor was.**

**Until next time, l see y'all later!**


	15. 15: Breathe

"Doctor?" I called out into the gloom. "Doctor, where are you?"

"Anne! I said thirty minutes!" The familiar voice of the Doctor broke through the silence of the cavern. Blindly, I ran to where I had heard him. I hadn't even gotten a few feet before I crashed into his chest.

"What happened? Did something happen? Where's the thing that told you to die?" A dozen questions were flying at me at the speed of light yet all I could think about was not letting him go.

"She's right around the corner. But, Doctor, before you go in there, there's something you should know." I explained everything about Medusa and what I saw as fast as I could. An unknown and brand new sense was telling me that Medusa was getting impatient.

The Doctor was silent for a moment after I had stopped talking. Then he finally spoke, "How exactly do you think we'll help her?"

My stomach sunk. "We have to. Isn't that your job; to help out everyone who needs it?"

"I can't exactly help every single person who needs it, Anne." The Doctor said in a solemn voice. "If I could, every little slight in history would never have happened."

I was silent. If we couldn't help Medusa like I had promised, what would she do? I got the sick feeling in my gut that the serpent part of her wouldn't hesitate to turn us both to stone right then and there. But still, I felt like I had to _try_…

"How does Medusa die again?" I asked. The Doctor's eyes widened as he caught on to what I was thinking.

"Anne, I must warn you: it's probably not a good idea to tell Medusa about her death. It could rip a hole in the space-time continuum. It'll cause an early apocalypse."

"Isn't that a little drastic?" I asked with raised eyebrows.

The Doctor shifted his head from side to side. "Maybe; but it's still not a good idea. You don't know how she'll react. She could lash out on you."

"Wouldn't it be worth a shot?" I asked defiantly. The Doctor didn't answer, just glared at me with frustration in his dark eyes. He sighed and nodded. I led the way back into the cavern.

"Medusa? The Doctor's here; he's here to help." I called out. There was the sound of scales rubbing up against stone and soon Medusa was coiled in front of the both of us. The Doctor gripped my upper arm.

"Can he really help?" Medusa asked. The Doctor took a step forward.

"I'm not sure what _I _can do; but I think that Anne here had it taken care of." He glanced over his shoulder at me and gave me an encouraging smile. I widened my eyes at him. "If she can't help you, I don't know who can." He turned fully to me. "Do what you must." And with that, the Doctor left me alone to deal with this by myself.

I turned back to Medusa when he finally disappeared. Medusa looked hurt and confused. "I thought that _he _was supposed to help. Where is he going, Anne Worthing?"

"Medusa," I started carefully. "Didn't you tell me that I can see the future now?"

"Certain parts of it, yes," Medusa said quietly. "Why do you ask?"

I gestured for her to come closer. Medusa hesitated but obeyed anyway. I wasn't completely sure what I was supposed to do, but it seemed like my new instincts were kicking in. I raised my hands up to Medusa's temples and ordered her to close her eyes while closing mine. There was a brief moment of darkness before a scene swirled in front of my eyes.

We were still in the cavern. But this time there was a man in here as well. He had a silver sword gleaming in his hand and he was checking corners of the cavern with the inside of his shield. On my right, there was the future Medusa, hiding behind a pillar. She looked scared, but also, hopeful in an odd way.

"Come on! Come on out and face me!" The man yelled. His thunderous voice echoed around the cavern. Medusa flinched at the sound of his voice but slithered out of her hiding place all the same. I watched as she started slowly sliding up to him.

"I will not fear him," She was muttering. Goosebumps prickled across my arms. "I welcome death for my family will be there by the river Styx. I welcome death, because it will bring nothing but peace."

Medusa's voice echoed away as she crept up behind the man. I watched with tears forming in my eyes as he shut his own eyes tight and spun around, sword in hand.

There was the sound of metal slicing through flesh. I closed my eyes; refusing to watch it. When I opened them again, Perseus was already carrying the head of Medusa away.

I blinked and I was back in the present day cavern. Medusa was crouched in front of me, weeping. Did I really do the right thing, I asked myself. But, in the long run, I assume it was better that she knew.

"Are you okay?" I asked stupidly. Of course she wasn't okay! But I would rather ask a stupid question than just stand there awkwardly not saying anything at all.

"How long have you known?" Medusa asked. I swallowed the rising fear in my throat.

"I always knew; I just figured that you deserved to know."

Medusa let out another dry weep. "I apologize for dragging you into this, Anne Worthing. Especially since you knew what would happen; yet you still wished to help. I hope you can forgive me."

I blinked. "There's nothing to forgive." Medusa glanced up at me and gave me a small smile. She drew herself up to full height.

"Your doctor," Medusa began. "You said he helped people all the time. Why couldn't he do anything here?"

I shrugged. "I think it has to do with the fact that it could damage a timeline somewhere." Medusa frowned at the word timeline. "It's complicated."

"I was sure that you both would help me." Medusa continued. "Like in those stories we are told as children; the ones about soldiers saving the maiden."

A knight in shining armor, I thought. I smiled to myself at the thought of the Doctor wearing silver-plated armor, looking like he had just leapt from the pages of a fairytale.

"He isn't a knight in shining armor, just a madman with a blue box." I said vaguely without really thinking. Medusa looked at me with surprise in her eyes. I backtracked. "But don't worry; if there's ever a moment where you feel like a damsel in distress, he'll be the Prince Charming you had been hoping for."

Medusa sighed and smiled along with me. "I will miss you, Anne Worthing; you and your doctor. And I shall never forget this moment."

She guided the way out of the cavern, all while keeping the sunglasses firmly on her face. The Doctor took up the rear and I resisted the urge to glance back at him and give him a smoldering I-told-you-so look. Sunlight brightened the cavern as we reached the exit.

"This is as far as I dare go," Medusa said quietly. "Do you wish for your instrument back?" She tapped my sunglasses with a clawed finger. Smiling, I shook my head.

"They're yours," I said. Medusa smiled at me one last time before melting back into the darkness of the cavern. I stared at the place where she disappeared until the Doctor clapped his hand on my shoulder.

"Let's go, Miss Worthing." He said softly. I nodded and with his hand over mine, we climbed the slope up and out into the light of day.


	16. 16: Stranded

I yawned and ribbed the sleep from my eyes. The bedroom that I had found in the TARDIS worked for me incredibly well. It was connected to a private bathroom and every time I stepped out of the shower, I would find a fresh pile of others that the TARDIS apparently picked out.

Today those clothes ended up being a pair of black skinny jeans and a loose olive shirt that I matched with my favorite black converse. When I arrived in the control room, the Doctor was already mashing buttons on the panel and was causing the TARDIS to rock gently.

"Where to next?" I asked. The Doctor glanced at me, swept to the other side of the console and placed his black, square-framed glasses on the bridge of his nose.

"There's a distress signal coming from deep space," The Doctor said. He plucked up a nearby hammer and whacked it against console. "It's about five trillion miles away from the nearest fueling station and the scan says that it's almost out of fuel."

"Are we heading that way?" I asked, feeling as if I already knew the answer.

"Yeeup!" The Doctor replied, dragging out the word. "We'll land in just three minutes." He paused. "Oh, I almost forgot!" He started to move away from the console but quickly returned when a purple light started to blink. "Here; hold down this button!"

I pressed my palm down on the large, violet button while the Doctor leapt away. I was alone for barely a minute before the Doctor rushed back with a broad smile on his face.

"I should've given you this a while ago, but the time got away from me." The Doctor said warmly.

I grinned at him and narrowed my eyes. "Is that supposed to be a pun?"

The Doctor opened his mouth, closed it, and laughed loudly. "You're funny. Here's what I wanted to give you." He dropped a small silver key into my hand. I smiled as I recognized a key to the TARDIS.

"I really get a key to the TARDIS?" I asked. The Doctor grinned with all of his teeth and nodded. I laughed at his outrageousness and tucked the little key into my pants pocket.

The TARDIS jerked a little as we landed and the Doctor wasted no time leaping out of the doors. I followed more slowly; something wasn't right here.

The Doctor had said that this ship was almost out of fuel, yet I felt like this entire place was charged with energy. The overall feeling was telling me to get my butt back on the TARDIS and to fly away as fast and as soon as possible.

"What are you waiting for, Anne?" The Doctor called over his shoulder at me. "You gotta see this view!"

I sighed and left the safety of the TARDIS. But before I joined the Doctor farther down the hall, I made sure to turn back around and lock the doors to the TARDIS. The Doctor was waiting patiently for me to meet him at the end of the hall.

"Come look at this here, Anne!" He said cheerfully. I joined him and looked out of the window he had been talking about and completely lost my breath.

I had once thought of space as a black blanket with stars spread out and scattered no matter where you turned. This view proved me wrong. The outside of this ship was surrounded in nothing but darkness. There weren't any stars anywhere to light up the black and the only sign of light came from a miniscule dark purple spot from farther out on the horizon. I turned back to the Doctor, who was admiring the view from behind his glasses.

"You weren't kidding when you said that we were in deep space," I said. He nodded.

"This is farther than I've ever gone, Miss Worthing. Just think, we're seeing a scene that has never known light! How does that make you feel?" He asked.

I considered lying, but in the end I answered honestly. "This entire picture terrifies me,"

The Doctor smiled and nodded with approval. "Correct,"

"Who goes there?" A loud call echoed from down the wide hall. I turned around with the Doctor to face two creatures that only reached my waist. I tilted my head at them, curious at the weird things.

Like I said, they only went up to my waist. Their skin was more like scales; dark black scales. Tall and pointed ears looked like they were slapped onto the side of their peanut-shaped heads and their eyes took up most of their faces and were a bright and shiny silver. The taller one was the one who questioned the Doctor and I. The smaller one lagged behind and kept its head bowed.

"Why hello there," The Doctor said very happily. The creature narrowed its silver eyes at him. "I'm called the Doctor, and this is my companion, Anne Worthing. Just call her Anne, though. May I ask who you are?"

"I am known as Etnom and I am a proud Sputnee. My companion behind me is the lesser Sputnee known as Mercury. A weakling name it is! Tell me Doctor, how did you come to my beloved captain's ship?" This Etnom said all of this in one, proud breath.

"We came here on board my own ship." The Doctor said plainly. "Can I ask that I speak with the captain of this ship?"

Etnom sputtered and took a step to the Doctor. "You will not be that bold! I can grant you a tour of the ship; maybe you help us with our predicament. But your companion must stay here."

I half-expected the Doctor to agree and go ahead on this tour. But he surprised me. "Unfortunately I cannot accept. Miss Worthing and I are stuck together. Wherever I go, she must as well."

Etnom lifted his scaly lips and revealed a set of white and pointed fangs. "I will not take orders from a medical man who reeks of curiosity!"

"I do hope that's a good smell," The Doctor muttered quietly. I tapped on his shoulder, causing him to turn and face me.

"You can go ahead and I can wait here. How big can this ship be?"

The Doctor narrowed his eyes at me. "Are you sure, Anne? I don't know how long I could be gone."

I wasn't sure. I didn't want to be separated. This ship was making me more and more uneasy the longer we stood here. But maybe if the Doctor left, we could get one step closer to leaving this ship. So I nodded with what I hoped was confidence, and the Doctor sighed and turned back around to Etnom.

"Alrighty then, let's take that tour!"

"My companion will stay here as well; to keep yours company." Etnom said with a twisted grin (or what I assumed was supposed to be a grin). He then motioned for the Doctor to follow him and with one last look over his shoulder, the Doctor nodded farewell to me. I was left alone with the second Sputnee.

"What was your name again?" I asked. The younger Sputnee looked mortified at being addressed to directly and glanced at me nervously before answering.

"I am known as Mercury," He paused before adding. "I was named for my mother's home planet."

I thought of Mercury, the planet so close to my own planet, and smiled at the thought of life forms living there. "Is Etnom, or whatever his name is from that planet too?" The alien shook his head violently, causing his ears to flop.

"That is why I am known as a lesser Sputnee; my father is pure Sputnee who mated with my mother. I am unpure."

I frowned at him. "No you're not." I said without thinking. Mercury looked at me with wide, silver eyes. His eyes freaked me out, but I forced myself to smile politely at him. Mercury then lifted his lips into what resembled a smile.

I turned my back to him and looked outside the wide window again. "So, Mercury, where are the other crewmen. A ship this big surely needs more than two people to fly it." I didn't get an answer. "Mercury?" A twisted and terrified feeling flooded into my gut as I spun around to come face to face with needle.

"I deeply apologize, Miss Worthing," Mercury said sadly before plunging the needle into my neck. As the unknown fluid gushed into my body, I felt an overwhelming black tide wash over my body. My eyes rolled back into my skull, and I fainted.


	17. 17: Viva la Vida

A blinding light was shining through my eyelids. I attempted to open them, but they were too heavy to open. Fine, I thought as I moved my hands to rub my eyes.

But they wouldn't move.

My heart started hammering in my chest. I couldn't move my arms! No matter how hard I tried, my arms were too heavy to lift even an inch off the table I was on; my legs too. I tried to scream for help, but my mouth seemed locked shut.

"Test subject ready for experimentation," A familiar voice said from close by. If I could've flinched away I would've. I heard the sound of little, scaly feet hitting the floor with a smack. "Test subject has been sanitized and disabled of all defensive movements. There will be no complaint from this one."

"Why are the eyes closed?" A new and deeper voice asked. "This poor creature is being held against its will. We should at least let it see how it will die."

A series of beeps sounded from my far right and the weight that had rested on my eyelids was lifted. The second I opened my eyes, I wanted to close them again.

Etnom from earlier was standing at my elbow, holding out a long and flat scanner and pointing it towards my stomach. Another Sputnee was standing beside my head and was staring down at me with its silver eyes.

"This is the creature that arrived with that Doctor, correct?" He asked.

"Precisely, Lord Commander; that is the Earthling." Etnom explained. "We have never captured human energy before."

"Excellent work," The Lord Commander praised Etnom. "Make sure that it makes no sound; we do not need the Doctor coming in after it."

Etnom cackled. "We have already dealt with the Doctor."

My heart thudded harder. What had they done with the Doctor? A screen standing beside my feet showed my heart rate accelerate. Etnom noticed.

"The human fears for its Doctor," Etnom cackled again. The Lord Commander of the ship shook his head.

"I've found that human emotions are next to nothing. What good is 'love' compared to the feel of a syringe in one's hand? Etnom, is the serum ready?"

"Yes, Lord Commander!" Etnom cried in what sounded like excitement. The Lord Commander nodded gruffly.

"Good; proceed with the operation. Summon me once you have human and Time Lord energy." I watched the Lord Commander leave my eyesight, and with him, my last hope.

Etnom left my line of sight for a moment. I listened to him shift glass containers until he returned beside my head. He had a syringe filled with brownish-orange liquid in his clawed hand.

Etnom placed his free hand on my forehead and turned my head away from him. I then felt his claws brush aside and then the sharp tip of the syringe being forced into my skull.

It was odd; I could literally feel the unknown liquid rush down my body from the inside of my skull to right above my legs. Was that it? What had Etnom put inside me? I could barely see him out of the corner of my eye. He looked to be waiting.

An orangey-gold glow formed just above my stomach. I strained my eyes towards it only to discover that the glow was coming from inside of me. My eyes widened while Etnom plucked up a long, metal wand and held it right above my body. To my horror, when he started to move the wand up towards my chest, the glow followed it. He led the glow up into my throat. I could feel it; it was warm and bright and filled up my throat until I thought I would choke.

Etnom laughed savagely. He flicked the wand, and an orange and gold mist flew out of my mouth. My eyes rolled back as an overwhelming black tide rendered me unconscious.

* * *

My vision was blurry. It felt like I was floating. Everything was blurred and bent out of shape. A thin, swirling mist was floating in front of my eyes. It couldn't be, I thought. But the realization hit me like the door to the TARDIS. Whatever orange and gold glow had left my body, I was seeing through it right now.

"Anne!" A hauntingly familiar voice called in my head. Doctor…? "Yes, it's me. Turn to your left!"

That one order proved hard to do. I no longer had a body; my mind was floating in the mist by itself. I couldn't do it.

"That's fine!" The Doctor's voice was once again in my head. How was he…? "I'm in the same situation as you. But they're still using my body to get information; I don't know where yours is. The only reason I'm talking to is because I've figured out how to manipulate the serum that they forced down our necks!"

Where are you, I thought. There was a pause before he answered. "Look around; find the one that doesn't belong." Although my vision was bent out of shape, I could still see colors. And in the middle of the orange and gold mist, an electric blue shape stuck out like a sore thumb.

"There I am," The blue mist raised a wisp of energy and waved it back and forth. He was waving at me. "Listen, Anne, we've been put in jars; like science experiments. We need to move back and forth, okay. We do that for long enough, the jars will fall and shatter. Once we're free, our misty selves will immediately zoom to the first body they find without energy. D'you follow?"

Yeah, I follow, I thought to him.

"Good, now start rocking!"

It took a few moments to get used to the mist. But I managed to learn how to rock back and forth, and, eventually, knock my jar off the shelf.

The loud sound of shattering glass rang all around me. I found myself rushing forward and up to the ceiling. If you had been standing on the floor below, you could've blinked and my mist would already be long gone. Shapes and colors blurred past me so fast there wasn't any time to comprehend what was happening.

Suddenly, an actual and solid shape formed directly in front of me. My mist shot forward and I rejoiced at the idea of being reunited with my body. But as my mist got closer, I noticed certain traits that were not my own; floppy brown hair and warm brown eyes…

No, no, no, no, no!

I flinched as the mist collided with the Doctor's body.


	18. 18: Feeling a Moment

"Is the Doctor alright? Should we take him back to the laboratories?"

I opened my eyes to find myself surrounded by the Lord Commander and Etnom and Mercury. I blinked and, very shakily, stood up. Holy crap, I'm a giant!I now _towered _over the Sputnee.

The Lord Commander lifted his lips in what was supposed to be a smile. "Are you healthy, Doctor?"

I stared at him. Oh, right, he meant _me_. "Um, yes, yes, I'm perfectly…fine?" It came out as a question. To add to my nerves, Mercury suddenly frowned.

"Your accent has changed; are you sure you are perfectly fine, Doctor?"

Inside my mind, a string of swears were flying around. Damn the Doctor's noticeable accent! I cleared my throat and prepared my best Doctor accent. "Oh yeah; I'm feelin' absolutely _fantastic! _Why don't we continue with…whatever it was we were doing?"

Etnom frowned but the Lord Commander smiled (sort of) and nodded before turning tail and continuing on his way. Etnom and Mercury followed without hesitation. I lagged a little behind.

This was so weird. I knew that the Doctor had two hearts, as he had told me this a little after telling me about the Time War, but to feel them both beat together in an uneven pattern was unnerving. I also knew that he was thin but this was ridiculous! The pinstripe suit clung to me and every time I took a breath, the suit pressed tightly against my shoulders and stomach. On top of all of that, the Doctor's body was very long and gangly, extremely different from my own short and stout. His entire body was completely different and it only made me think about how the doctor was reacting to _my _body.

"Now, doctor," The Lord Commander cleared his throat. I flinched and faced him, desperately trying to act casual. "I'm afraid I have come across a dilemma on this starship."

I raised my eyebrows. "Really? What problems would that be?" I said that far too fast. Mercury noticed and glanced at me sharply.

"We have run out of fuel, Doctor," The Lord Commander said. "Unfortunately we have been forced to run on life energy. As you can see, we only have three crewmen left." He turned to me with a questioning expression on his scaly face. I realized that he wanted me to tell him what to do.

"Well," I said, putting as much cockney in my accent as possible. "Because of the fact that using life energy to fuel a starship is illegal, according to the Shadow Proclamation, very few starships dare to use life energy where the largest amount comes from the sun seeds of Sector Twenty-Two."

I froze as this rush of information came flooding from my mouth. Where in the hell had _that _come from? The Doctor had never told me about a proclamation or sun seeds. The realization dawned on me fairly quickly: I didn't just get the Doctor's body, I got his mind too. That information frightened me and delighted me at the same time.

The Lord Commander snorted. "Yes, we understand the basis of the illegal use of life energy. But we are trapped in deep space and are all out of the energy of the last few crewmen."

Etnom turned to me with an evil grin. "How far do you suppose a human's energy will get us?"

"Fairly far, I'd reckon," I said without thinking. None of the Sputnee were looking at me; thank God too, otherwise they'd see me shove my fist into my mouth and bite down. Shut up, shut up, shut up!

"How far exactly, Doctor?" The Lord Commander asked. My fist came out of my mouth and I answered before I could stop the flood of knowledge.

"A human's energy will only get you a certain distance. It all depends on their personality, values, power of emotions—Ouch!" I forced myself to bite down on my tongue—the Doctor's tongue—Argh!

"Interesting," The Lord Commander said thoughtfully. "How you judge your companion's personality, values, and power of emotions?"

"Why don't you bring her up and see for yourself?" I asked. What was I doing? The information flew through my mind just as I asked the question. I needed the Doctor to get my body upstairs with me, so that's what I was doing.

The Lord Commander sent Etnom down to fetch my real body. Then he accompanied him. I was left alone with Mercury for the second time. I narrowed my eyes at him.

"I humbly apologize for my actions upon your companion, Doctor." Mercury said without looking at me. One part of the Doctor's brain wanted to attack the little creature, the other half sympathized.

"On the other hand, it seems to look like you and the Doctor escaped just fine, Miss Worthing." Mercury said suddenly. I widened my eyes at him and my mouth opened repeatedly. "Don't think about lying; I could tell it was you the moment you came to. The others are not educated in the ways of life energy as I am."

"Can you switch us back?" I asked desperately. Mercury looked at me shyly.

"I can and I will," He said determinedly. "But only if you promise to take me home afterwards."

"I promise," I vowed. Mercury smiled at me. This time, it looked real.

"It will not be easy, but it will not be impossible. But first, we need your true body." I nodded as Mercury told me this. There was the sound of footsteps and the Lord Commander returned with Etnom and my body—the real Doctor in tow.

The second our eyes met, the Doctor's eyes widened. I could only look at myself as I would in a mirror. My dark blond hair was tangled and rumbled, proof that the Doctor had been running nervous hands through it. And my blue eyes had a wild and warm glow to them that I thought had only belonged to the Doctor's natural brown eyes. Suddenly, pictures and memories began flooding in front of my eyes.

First I saw a stunning blond girl bent over and clutching her nose outside of the TARDIS. Then she looked up and had the most startling blue eyes I had ever seen. The image evaporated and was replaced by the same girl sitting by herself on a stone bench. Next was the girl standing with a young version of Edgar Allan Poe, and I instantly felt the tugs of jealousy prick at my chest. Then we were facing a gaping cave entrance and she had the bright glow of determination in her eyes, and I knew that it would be useless to try and argue with her. And then she came to me in the TARDIS, with golden skin and slightly damp hair. She was a stranger and yet, since the beginning, I had felt a pull towards her.

I snapped out of the string of memories and felt a sting from the back of my eyes. The Doctor was watching me closely from behind my own eyes. He had known me; he had always known me.


	19. 19: Look Through My Eyes

"What are your thoughts Doctor?" The Lord Commander asked me. I opened my mouth and then closed it again. The real Doctor was watching me with slightly raised eyebrows and Mercury kept glancing between the two of us. Etnom narrowed his silver eyes and was looking very suspicious.

"On what exactly?" I asked stupidly. The Doctor rolled his eyes—my eyes—and I gave myself a mental slap. The Lord Commander raised the scaly flesh above his eyes.

"On the pressing matter at hand! Do you think you're companion would serve us good fuel?" The Lord Commander said in an agitated voice. For a race that seemed to scoff human emotions, they sure did show lots of angry emotions. I swallowed and added more Cockney into my voice.

"I honestly don't think he'd—she'd be that good of fuel for the simple fact that she's a pain to travel with." I said of the top of my head. The Doctor narrowed his eyes at me but held his tongue.

"What do you mean?" Etnom asked rudely.

I scoffed and rolled my eyes before pointing at the Doctor. "Well, just look at her for starters!" The Doctor was now frowning at me and crossed his arms at me. "That shirt with those jeans is horrendous, and her hair is all scruffy and tangly at the moment. She's a mess, really."

The Lord Commander and Etnom exchanged a look; Mercury had turned away to try and hide his amusement; the Doctor had simply placed his hands on his hips and had raised his eyebrows all the way to his hairline—my hairline—God, I wanted my body back!

"You seem to need to get your mind together, Doctor." The Lord Commander said. "Etnom, go and inspect the Doctor's ship; it may have the fuel we need."

The TARDIS! The Doctor's eyes got to the size as saucers as he realized that he hadn't locked the door. I quickly caught his eye as Etnom started marching away; I nodded to the pocket of his jeans. He found the key and noticeably deflated.

"Mercury, I will be in my quarters," The Lord Commander told the young Sputnee. "Inform me if Etnom actually discovers something." He marched away and around the corner. Mercury turned to the Doctor and me.

"So my hair is scruffy and tangly?" The Doctor asked as soon as the Lord Commander was gone. I felt my face turn scarlet and shrugged. The Doctor laughed. "And for the record, I like the clothes that you found in the TARDIS." I turned even redder, thinking back to the memories that had floated before my eyes.

"If you are to change back," Mercury interrupted. "We need to hurry. It won't take long for Etnom to unlock your ship. He'll bash in the door if he has to."

"Well then let's hurry!" The Doctor exclaimed and allowed Mercury to lead the way. I trialed behind, watching the Doctor move around in my body. He was so used to being taller than everybody that he was taking much wider steps than I thought I would ever see myself take. And he was talking with my voice but with his own accent. It was bizarre.

Mercury led us both into a smaller chamber off the main hall. On the inside there was a large metal contraption hooked up to the back wall. Out of the machine, two hose and helmet-looking contraptions were perched up on a hook. Mercury gestured to the machine and, with a nervous glance, the Doctor and I walked anxiously to the machine.

Mercury had to stand up on a pedestal to be able to reach our heads in order to hook us both up properly. I tapped on the edge of my helmet-thingy and then waved it out to get Mercury's attention.

"How does this work again?" I asked nervously. Mercury blinked his silver eyes at me patiently.

"The machine will inject you with the same fluid that Etnom injected you with earlier. This will lower the life energy's defensive instincts and it will allow the energy to be moved to anywhere inside your body, or in our case, outside of your body."

"And what happens when the energy is outside of the body?" The Doctor asked.

"The energy will float upwards, run through its opposite energy, and then zoom back down to its proper body." Mercury replied.

"But what if the energies just get confused again like last time and we end up still in the same body?" I asked in a rushed voice. Mercury sighed and stared at my face.

"Do not worry, Miss Worthing. The energy will not make the same mistake twice." He turned away and trotted back to where the main controls were kept. "Now when the machine goes off it'll take up the last of the fuel, so the Lord Commander and Etnom will know what happened. So right when those helmets come off, you must be ready to run, got it?"

I nodded along with the Doctor and I mentally braced myself for the shock that was bound to happen. Suddenly, I felt a smaller hand close around mine—the Doctor's—ugh. I turned to see the Doctor looking at me with a small smile on his face. I nodded nervously and tightened the grip I had on his hand. Mercury flipped the switch.

I now know what it's like to be struck by lightning. The electric current rushed through my body and I could feel every single fiber on the Doctor's body. Both hearts started pumping faster than I could ever imagine. They both morphed together to blend into four beats; like a drum…

_Boom, boom, boom, boom._

The Doctor was falling through the ceiling and onto the floor below. He was surrounded by a rough-looking man with scraggly blond hair and he was wearing a black hoodie and a group of people were wearing red and gold outfits that just confused me as to how they even got them on. And in the corner there was an old man hiding in a glass container.

_Boom, boom, boom, boom._

The vision ended and I was no longer in any sort of body. I was back as the orange and gold mist. Just like what Mercury had said, I was floating gently up to the ceiling and right beside me was the electric blue mist that really was the Doctor. The mists faced each other and, with one swift motion, we both flicked the tail-like parts of our mists and swept through one another. The two mists twined as we flew back down to where the appropriate bodied were waiting.

I gasped as my mist entered my body. I quickly started checking myself; I had my right hands back; the right legs; the right hair. I looked over to the Doctor to see that he was doing the exact same thing. We exchanged a glance that quickly escalated into a hug.

"Sorry, Doctor," I said. "But I prefer my body over yours any day."

"Tell me about it!" The Doctor said happily, hugging himself. "I don't know how you humans deal with only one heart; it's a wonder how you don't collapse from lack of blood flow."

That reminded me. "Doctor, I saw something right when the zap came down. It was really weird; I saw—"

"Sorry to interrupt," Mercury said loudly. "But the Lord Commander and Etnom are on their way here. If we want to get off of this ship, we need to leave now." The Doctor and I exchanged looks.

"Tell me about it once we're on the TARDIS," The Doctor said. I nodded and followed him and Mercury out of the chamber and we all headed for what we hoped was safety.

* * *

**A/N: I have a random question I would like to ask. I think we all have heard about the news about Matt Smith leaving Doctor Who. What are your thoughts? Eleven was never my absolute favorite Doctor, but he was still one of my favorites and he made me laugh on several occasions with his quirkiness and silly way of figuring things out. So, opinions, thoughts on the next regeneration, I want to know!**

**That's all. :)**


	20. 20: The Shining

The road was quiet on the way to where we had parked the TARDIS. Mercury's padded feet slapped softly against the polished floor. I kept looking over my shoulder to make sure that no one was coming. Then, all of a sudden, the lights overhead flickered and turned off.

"The last of the fuel has been used." Mercury hissed softly. "We are officially trapped out here. Let's hurry and find your ship."

The Doctor and I followed Mercury through the endless hallways and all I could think of was the memories that had flitted across my vision earlier. The Doctor had really thought that way about me, but something was telling me that this hadn't been the first or the last time he would feel this way. I kept seeing a pretty blond woman with a man who had a shaved head and a large leather jacket. No matter how many times I pushed the thoughts away, they kept forcing themselves back up.

"There's the TARDIS," The Doctor said loudly. I snapped out of my thoughts to see the familiar blue box right where we left it. The Doctor ran for his precious machine and he hugged it tightly. Mercury looked up to me.

"Is he always this way?" Mercury asked. I snorted and laughed.

"Actually yes," I answered. The Doctor removed himself from the TARDIS and stuck out his tongue. I rolled my eyes and pulled the TARDIS key out of my pocket and tossed it to him. The Doctor quickly unlocked the TARDIS door and we all sprinted inside. Mercury's eyes widened as far as they could go when he started getting a good look of the inside.

"It's bigger on the inside!" I said cheerfully. Mercury nodded absentmindedly. The Doctor shot me a large grin and started to press buttons on the panel. The TARDIS began to rock gently back and forth.

"Mercury," The Doctor called. Mercury was clutching a golden branch. "Where are you from?"

"I am from the planet Sputnock," Mercury replied. He was visibly shaking. I felt a stab of pity for him so I knelt down and placed my hand on his scaly head. Mercury threw me a thankful glance.

"Off we go!" The Doctor cried. The TARDIS rocked back and forth for a moment before stopping. He quickly ran to the doors and threw them open to reveal a red planet.

The soil was bright red and for a moment I thought we were on Mars. But this planet was brighter and had swirls of black soil piercing through the blood red. On the horizon, there was a pure white city. Buildings stood tall over the land like those long white candlesticks. It was positively gleaming with life. This was Sputnock. This was where Mercury, Etnom, and the Lord Commander had come from.

"I'm home," Mercury breathed. I smiled down at him as he stepped reluctantly from the TARDIS. He turned around back to me and the Doctor. "How can I ever thank you both?"

"Live a long life, my friend," The Doctor said smoothly. I nodded my agreement. Mercury grinned widely and, with one last wave, he started to walk away.

"What do you know about this place?" I asked the Doctor. He glanced at me before answering.

"As you could tell, the Sputnee are extremely proud creatures." The Doctor said. "They don't believe in simple things like emotions, despite the proof that they actually have them. Their blood status means everything to them. That's why the Lord Commander and Etnom had been so hostile to little Mercury. They're not the friendliest aliens in the universe. At first I was shocked about Mercury and how he acts, but I guess that's just the blood from the planet Mercury coming out."

I nodded as we disappeared back into the TARDIS. The Doctor started to press more buttons on the panel. "Now where to, Miss Worthing?" The Doctor asked.

I opened my mouth to answer but was interrupted by a deafening boom. The TARDIS was smashed around to the side and I let out a scream as I was knocked off my feet. "Anne!" I could hear the Doctor calling for me. I called out, wondering where he was. The TARDIS had been thrown into a scene of chaos and I could no longer tell where he was.

Suddenly, a bright and white light shined down from what appeared to be the ceiling of the TARDIS. It shined down right on top of the Doctor. The Doctor stared up at the light and then turned to where I was kneeling and our eyes locked. A whirring noise similar to the one when the TARDIS stops started to sound.

Without thinking, some primal instinct forced me to my feet and I charged to where to Doctor had been kneeling. I quickly knocked him out of the way until the light was shining completely on me.

The whirring noise got even louder and I could see the Doctor opening his mouth in what looked like screaming. I couldn't hear him. I closed my eyes for one second, but when I opened them again, the TARDIS and the Doctor and the chaos that had surrounded me was long gone, and I was left alone in darkness.


	21. 21: For the Missing

I reached up and removed the dusty book from the shelf. The elderly Sputnee below just barely grew to my waist. White hair sprouted from his long, black ears and his silver eyes were watery and droopy.

"Thank you, kind stewardess," He croaked. I bowed deeply; the customary bow that all stewards of the Sanctuary are supposed to master at a young age. The old Sputnee hobbled away with the help of his cane. I turned on my heel and walked in a very orderly fashion back to my station.

I had been donated to the Sanctuary at a young age. My parents were, just like all the other parents nowadays, too poor to feed the extra mouths. So they donated me to a life of servitude and safety in the Sanctuary.

As I strolled my way to my station, I spotted the other stewardesses in my station. There was a middle-aged Sputnee with cursed golden eyes instead of the usual silver. There was another human by the name of Kaycee; she had been donated a few months ago. We all wore the customary black dress and black tights with plain heels and white gloves. We were all uniform at all times, as was required.

This life was all I had ever known, yet I sometimes got the feeling that I didn't belong here. I passed a mirror on my way to my station and out of habit, I glanced at it. Inside of the mirror, staring back at me wasn't my reflection.

The girl looked just like me. But while my dark blond hair was perfectly pinned into a sleeked bun, this version's hair was a tangly mess. Her blue eyes were frantic as she stared at me. I blinked calmly back at her.

_This isn't you. _A voice whispered into my ear. Even the voice sounded like my own. But it was an illusion. I had always lived at the Sanctuary. This version of myself in the mirror was nothing more than an illusion. The mirror image blinked and opened her mouth repeatedly, as if trying to talk to me.

_You need to snap out of it and find the Doctor. This isn't you._

I blinked coolly at the reflection and proceeded on my way to the station. Suddenly, an alarm overhead sounded and I froze, waiting for orders.

"Stewardess number fourteen-twenty-two, there are two male specimens on the third floor that are in need of your assistance."

I turned sharply to the left and walked through a hallway, leaving the library section of the Sanctuary and entering the third floor. As soon as I entered the large, dome room, the two male specimens mentioned were waiting anxiously. I stood before their turned backs and coughed politely, as I was taught to.

The first male specimen was another Sputnee. The Sanctuary was right next door to the planet Sputnock, so most of our visitors were Sputnock-natives. It looked to be a particularly young Sputnee; no hair had yet grown inside its ears. That or it was not pure Sputnee.

The second male specimen looked to be human or some sort of humanoid. He was far taller than me with brunette hair that was slightly spiked and floppy at the same time. It would appear that he had suffered some sort of electrical shock; maybe that was why he was here. He was staring at me with wide brown eyes.

"I am stewardess number fourteen-twenty-two and I am here to assist you in any means necessary." I replied extremely smoothly with a hint of my familiar monotone-like voice. The man looked down desperately at the Sputnee, who took a few steps forward with padded feet.

"I am called Mercury, young stewardess," The Sputnee said. "I was wondering if you could give us both a history of the Sanctuary."

I blinked and motioned for both males to follow me. I led them to the grand and wide window that showed a map of the Sanctuary and its neighbors. "The Sanctuary was formed billions of years ago by scholars from all over the galaxy in search for a decent place to gather information, rest from weary days, and relax their worries away. Its neighbors are Sputnock, the Yellow Waste, and the icicle planet of Stiria. Most of the visitors to the Sanctuary are from these respective planets."

"And could you tell us more about the Sanctuary itself?" The Sputnee called Mercury asked. I blinked and nodded at the little creature. I ignored the looks the tall male was giving me; he was giving me a look of mourning.

"The Sanctuary is a planet composed of several hundred levels; five hundred and sixty-five levels to be exact. Every ten or twenty levels are dedicated to a certain field of study, relaxation, or fundraising events. Right now we are standing in the third level of the lobby."

The Sputnee called Mercury hesitated before asking another question. "And how are the stewards here donated?" The tall male threw him a sharp look.

"Most stewards are donated at a young age. They are either imperfect or disabled. Some stewards are taken as hostage from other planets for good behavior, but that has not been a case in several thousand years."

The Sputnee and the tall man exchanged a worried glance. I blinked at them and waited for my next command. The tall man walked forward until he was directly in front of me. I met his eyes evenly, as we stewards are trained to do so.

"Do you know me?" He asked.

"No; you have never checked into the Sanctuary before. I have lived here my entire existence."

The man looked miserable now. "You have _not _been here your entire existence." He told me sharply. "Your name is Anne Worthing. You are a human from the planet Earth. You are from a city called Burbank but we met in London, England, a place you hated. You slayed an Ala; you helped Medusa from herself; we switched bodies on a starship run by Sputnee; heck, you even snogged Edgar Allan Poe! You have to remember at least _some _of this!" He reached out and gripped my shoulders tightly. "C'mon Anne; I'm the Doctor. You just _have _to remember me."

The words he was saying were not making sense. I blinked. "I am stewardess number fourteen-twenty-two. You are making no sense at all, sir. Now I ask you politely to remove your hands from my body or I will have no choice but to summon security."

The man released me and gave me a miserable look. "I'm sorry Anne; I'm so sorry."


	22. 22: The Girl Who Sacrificed Herself

"We need to find the main server, Doctor." The Sputnee called Mercury said with caution. "We should find some answers there." He turned to me. "Can you take us to the main server, stewardess?"

"Don't you dare treat her like a machine!" The male called the Doctor snapped at the Sputnee. The Sputnee rolled his silver eyes at the Doctor.

"I grew up treating stewards like this; they don't realize how they're being treated, something inside the Sanctuary is sending signals to their brains, causing them to act like this and know all of this knowledge. If we find where that signal is coming from, we can destroy it and Miss Worthing will be back to herself, but only if we can find the signal."

The Doctor looked like he was going to argue some more, but he nodded gravely. The Sputnee nodded at me and repeated the question.

"I cannot take you to the main server; such actions are prohibited. I can, however, take you to the manager's wing and you may discuss your dilemma with him." I replied smoothly. The Sputnee gave the Doctor a pointed glance and ordered me to lead the way.

I led the two up staircases and past several other stewards and their visitors. I took them on the fastest way to the manager's wing, hoping that these two knew what they were getting into. I had escorted one angry visitor to the manager's wing once, and that visitor had been exterminated immediately. I paused in front of a steel door and punched in a code on a panel right beside the door.

The halls on this side of that steel door were made of glass. I did not feel comfortable in the hall of mirrors, but it was the only way to the manager's wing. So swallowed and began down the long and winding hall.

It didn't take long for that other version of myself to show its face. Her dark blond hair was just as tangly as it had been before and her blue eyes were sparkling with frustration. She followed me down the hall and kept moving her mouth, trying to talk to me.

_For Christ's sake the Doctor is right behind you! Talk to him! You need him to escape this place!_

I ignored my false self and continued down the winding hall and took a sharp right. The two behind me hurried to follow me. My mirror image followed as well, looking very angry indeed.

_I know that you believe this whole stewardess thing, but you've got to listen to me. Your real name is Anne Worthing. Your favorite color is purple. You were born in St. Paul, Minnesota but moved to Burbank, California when you were really young. Your parent moved you to London, England. You hated it there. That's where you met the Doctor._

She paused and pointed to the man following right behind me. I stopped and faced my reflection head on. "I am stewardess number fourteen-twenty-two and you are an illusion. The matrons here have told me that illusions are common among stewards."

"Anne," The man called the Doctor spoke softly. "Who are you talking to?" The reflection pointed again at him.

_That's the Doctor. You killed an Ala with him. He took you to see the stars where you saw a herd of star-whales. He took you to the year eighteen-thirty-one and you met Edgar Allan Poe. And you got to make out with him but that's not important._

The reflection turned a light shade of red when she mentioned this. I blinked. "Get on with your story, illusion."

_You saved Medusa from herself by giving her a pair of sunglasses and by showing her her own death. _The illusion's voice was getting more intense and more frantic. _You switched bodies with the Doctor and found out how he really felt about you. You saw a vision concerning him right before Mercury helped you get your body back. You sacrificed yourself for the Doctor. That light from the TARDIS? It wanted him but you stopped it. You're the girl who sacrificed herself and you will not spend the rest of your life in this hell hole!_

I shook my head frantically and pressed my palms against my temples. A rush of colors and sounds was flooding into my head. I saw it all; everything that reflection had spoken of, it all rushed into my head. For a brief moment, I found myself in a dark and damp cell. But right when I realized where I was, the memories were all gone and I was back in the glass hallway.

The illusion was nowhere to be seen.

I turned back to the two still standing behind me. "If you care to follow me the rest of the way, I will take you to the manager's wing and you may discuss your problems there. Come with me." I turned on my heel and continued out of the hall and to the pair of heavy wooden doors.

I knocked softly on the wood three times before opening the doors slowly. I heard the sharp intake of breath from the Doctor that signaled to me that he recognized the manager and ruler of the Sanctuary.


	23. 23: Remember Me

"Steward number fourteen-twenty-two," The manager started in a sharp voice. "What is the meaning of this? Why are these two here?"

"They wish to speak to you about our main server," I replied evenly. The Doctor and Sputnee glanced nervously at each other before walking in front of me towards the manager. I looked at the manager; he waved his clawed hand for me to stand at the side. I did so, walking around the two while doing so.

"Well, well, well," The manager said smoothly. "It's just so _nice _to see you again, Doctor, Mercury. How have you been?"

"Lord Commander?" The small Sputnee said tentatively. "How did you get here? We thought you were still on the—"

"On the starship to die?" The manager snapped in a heated voice. "Yes; you and the Doctor were long gone before Etnom and I could do anything. But I did manage to survive only by submitting Etnom's energy to the starship."

"Etnom is dead?" The Doctor asked. "You murdered your own crewman to save your own skin?"

The manager nodded deeply. "Precisely, Doctor," He gave both of them a wicked smile. I watched the Doctor's expression change; it went from one of disgust to one of rage.

"Etnom was loyal to you! Yes, he was despicable and was willing to kill but he was one hundred percent loyal to you alone, and you killed him." The Doctor said with growing fury. The manager shrugged and looked like he could care less.

"Loyalty can be bought, Doctor. Etnom simply wanted to get back to Sputnock." He paused before continuing. "I bet you're wondering as to how I reached this decent place of power."

The lesser Sputnee stepped forward. "It would be nice to know how." The manager stood from his throne and began the descent down to the wide window behind his throne. He beckoned us all to follow.

"After Etnom's energy was absorbed by the starship, the vessel steamed forward a few hundred miles right into the path of another starship, a bigger and more powerful starship. They welcomed me abroad, a lone survivor of a dead ship. They brought me here so I could rest. I soon figured out that as the manager here, I would get all information of what ships landed on the planets, Sputnock, the Yellow Waste, and Stiria. I managed to…_persuade _the first manager and I took over. Then I found the scan for your ship land on Sputnock, and I wanted revenge. So I sent a beam straight into your ship and aimed it for you, Doctor. But then your companion got in the way."

"Anne sacrificed herself for me," The Doctor said quietly with a glance towards me. I blinked back at him and retained a polite stare. The Doctor's jaw tightened and twisted before he asked his next question. "How are you controlling her?"

"Your companion is strong, Doctor," The manager said with what sounded like approval. "She fought the control at first, but as you were all in that mirror hall, I shut off the last of resistance. I don't know how she's been doing it, but before that, she's been messing with her signal and all the other signals for the other stewards."

The Doctor muttered something about Medusa's serpents and ears. The manager huffed and began to walk out. "I'm afraid I'll have to call security on both of you. I can't have you disrupting my Sanctuary any more than you already have." He quickly mashed a hidden blue button and the doors to the room opened and two large and silver robots wheeled swiftly into the room.

The first robot seized the lesser Sputnee and drug him away before he could understand what was happening. But the Doctor put up more of a fight. He struggled and fought but when two more silver security robots wheeled in he was taken away. The entire time he had been looking directly at me, his eyes aglow with panic, and shouting at me to remember.

* * *

"Steward number fourteen-twenty-two," The voice on the loudspeaker said. "Your presence is required in wing C flight two." I set down the stack of books I had been piling up and assigned another stewardess to finish the job before heading on my way.

Wing C was the prison ward. The Sanctuary may be a place of peace, but sometimes creature got out of hand and had to be handled. Flight two was an entire floor of cells.

I walked down endless flights of stairs and climbed into several glass elevators to get to the C wing. I finally reached the iron-rod gates that separated C wing from the rest of the Sanctuary. The guard nodded me entrance and I passed through the iron gates and walked down more stairs to flight two. In the very first cell I found the man called the Doctor.

"Anne! Good, you heard my announcement on the loudspeaker." The Doctor said in a highly relived voice.

"How did you manage that?" I asked politely in a monotone voice. The Doctor reached into the pocket of his suit and flashed me a silver and blue pen-like device.

"I pray you remember this?" The Doctor said slowly. I blinked at the strange device.

"I know that it is some sort of sonic device."

"Correct! It's a sonic screwdriver!"

"Screwdriver?" It didn't look like a screwdriver.

"You had the same reaction the first time you saw it." The Doctor said happily.

"This _is _the first time I'm seeing it, sir." I replied evenly. The Doctor's face showed signs of faint sadness but then it was gone.

"I think I know a way to get you back, Anne. Mercury over there has been telling me ways of temporarily blocking signals. If we can block your signal for a few minutes, maybe an hour, we can find the main server and turn it off."

I tilted my head to the side a bit. "You are not allowed to go to the main server. How do you propose on getting there?"

The Doctor turned a faint shade of red before answering. "Like this," And before I could object, the Doctor had reached through the bars of his cell, grabbed the sides of my face, and forced his mouth upon mine.

Everything came flooding back. All the memories that had been blocked were rushing back to me in a rush of color. The Doctor broke away and I swayed a bit on the spot, blinded by all of the memories now clogging my eyesight.

"Anne?" The Doctor's voice cleared away all of those memories. I blinked at him. "Are you back for now?"

I blinked at him again. "Doctor…what the hell am I wearing and why are you in a cell?"


	24. 24: Hurricane

I helped the Doctor and Mercury out of their cells, feeling very awkward after realizing what the Doctor had done to bring me back. Apparently he was feeling awkward as well because he made sure to keep his distance from me. Poor Mercury was just caught in the middle of the tension.

"Now Miss Worthing's signal is temporarily blocked and it shouldn't be long before the Lord Commander realized what's happened." Mercury told us as he started climbing up the stairs. "The next time the signal comes on, it'll be stronger and a simple kiss won't be able to block it again. We have to hurry." Mercury turned to me. "Now lead the way, Miss Worthing."

At first, I couldn't really remember where the main server was, but then I could feel the paths and secret trails flow back easily into my brain and I led the two of them past the guard and we started going down stairs and into elevators.

"This place is insane," I breathed to myself as we got into the third elevator. It jerked sideways and then started moving very smoothly. The Doctor nodded.

"I believe a few dozen people have gotten lost in these halls and were never seen again." He said that in such a nonchalant way that it forced a laugh from me. The Doctor smiled and we continued the elevator ride in silence.

We made it to a grand staircase and at the top was a metal door. I pointed to it. "The main server should be in there." The Doctor and Mercury bolted up the stairs. I followed more slowly, thinking about the calm stroll I had using for the past few weeks. If anyone saw me running around in a steward's uniform, people would suspect foul play.

The Doctor was about to run the sonic screwdriver along the edges of the door by the time I got up there. I quickly shooed him away.

"There's a sensor that lets the Lord Commander whenever someone uses a sonic device in this section of the Sanctuary. It has to be open by hand."

"But that's no fun," The Doctor whined, but he returned his screwdriver to his coat pocket. I stepped in front of him and ran a finger down the frame of the door. The metal shone orange from where my skin touched the door. There was a brief moment of nothingness until the door opened with a faint creak. I stepped into the dimly lit room with the Doctor and Mercury right behind me.

The main server was a large chunk of metal and lights sitting directly in the middle of the paneled room. The Doctor ran over to it a held out his sonic screwdriver. I stopped him once again.

"If the Lord Commander has put up sensors for sonic stuff _outside _the main server, don't you think he'd put even more up on the _inside_?" I asked. The Doctor sighed and hastily put his screwdriver back into the coat pocket. I turned back to the server and started to push light buttons I the order that seemed branded into brain. Then I stopped and stared.

"Well, that's not good," I mumbled. The Doctor and Mercury shot me nervous looks.

"What's not good?" Mercury asked. I pointed to the screen.

"See this?" I asked, pointing. "These bars here are not supposed to be like this. Someone's been manipulating the system. The only way to turn off the server is to destroy the entire Sanctuary."

I was answered with silence. The Doctor read the charts himself and cursed under his breath. I thought to all of the people here. Thousands of aliens came to the Sanctuary every day, some stayed for months on end. If we wanted to save me, we would have to send everyone else here to their deaths.

"How much time would we have if we turned it off?" The Doctor asked. I pushed a few more buttons.

"Only ten minutes," I answered miserably. The Doctor sighed and looked to be having a fight within himself.

"That's enough time," He decided finally. I stared at him. He stared back and put his black glasses back into his pocket. "Go ahead, push the button. Mercury and I will start to evacuate people. Ready?"

"No," I said honestly. The Doctor smiled.

"Good. Now turn off the server Anne Worthing and meet us in the ancient alien artifacts room, that's where the TARDIS is parked. We've got to get everyone off the planet before it goes kaboom!" He ran away from me and to the door, dragging Mercury with him. "Allons-y!"

I hesitated just before slamming down on the button that would turn off the server and try and blow up the planet. Instantly the mashed in button covered itself protectively in a glass case and red flashing lights started. The voice over the intercom started.

"Attention all visitors to the Sanctuary, the self-destruct initiation process has begun. Please take an orderly route to your nearest exit. Security droids will track down the terrorists have bring them into custody. Please enjoy your day."

I snapped my eyes back down to the button. It was glowing yellow exactly where my hand had touched its surface. The door was starting to seal itself. I bolted into a run and managed to slide out of the room right as the metal door slammed shut.

"Halt!" I turned to see five security droids surround me. I looked at them and started saying the first thing that came to my mind.

"The culprit ran off," I said in the calmest, most monotone voice I could muster. "He attacked me and then ran away. Hurry and catch him, please." Without saying goodbye, I calmly walked away from the door and the droids wheeled away to find the "culprit".

Where was the ancient alien artifacts sector again? I started down and escalator and was almost ran over by a few extremely fat aliens who reminded me of Jabba the Hutt. But I retained my calm persona of a steward and opened doors and strolled down stairs to where the ancient alien artifacts section was.

How was I supposed to find the Doctor in all of this mess? The room was the size of a warehouse and stuff was stacked to the roof with all types of ancient alien junk. I saw at least a dozen single spacecrafts that were supposed to be from an old war between Sputnock and Stiria. I saw some really old sand runners from the Yellow Waste and several bits of random junk just lying around. I turned a corner in the labyrinth and finally found the TARDIS. But it was with someone else.

"This really is a lovely machine," The Lord Commander said smoothly. "The only problem I see is that it is locked. Surely you know how to open it, Miss Worthing. I have seen your memories. You hold the device needed to open it."

"Even if I did have the key, I wouldn't give it to you." I said. The Lord Commander turned and looked at me with the droopy eyes of an elderly Sputnee. I realized how old he must be. He grinned evilly.

"Give me entrance to this machine, steward fourteen-twenty-two," The Lord Commander ordered. I stood my ground.

"I am not your steward. I am Anne Worthing from the planet Earth and I'm going to blow this place sky-high. Now get out of my way." I order back.

The Lord Commander blinked his large silver eyes. "No,"

There was a sudden knock on the TARDIS. As I looked at it I saw that a hand was pressed against the glass window of the door. The Doctor and Mercury must be in there…

They couldn't let me in without letting the Lord Commander in as well. I had to get rid of the Lord Commander before I could join my friends and get away from this awful place.

"Time left till destruction of the Sanctuary," The voice on the intercom interrupted. "One minute,"

"Now or never, Miss Worthing," The Lord Commander snarled. "You could let me in and we could both escape from the fiery inferno. Or you could refuse to make them open the door and we both burn."

There was another knock at the door. I looked dead at the Lord Commander before shaking my head once. Then he lunged.

I imagined the Lord Commander's attack on me similar to if a Chihuahua launched itself onto your face. The Lord Commander clawed and kicked at me and I screamed, trying to get the little monster off of me. I fell to the floor and the Lord Commander stood on my chest, scraping his claws along my face.

"Fifteen…fourteen…thirteen…" The countdown for the destruction of the Sanctuary began.

"It ends here," The Lord Commander snarled. I punched him straight across the face with a force that knocked him flying into a pile of space junk. I started to crawl to the TARDIS. The door opened wide and the Doctor was trying to encourage me to get there faster.

"Ten…nine…eight…seven…six…"

"Come on Anne!" The Doctor shouted. There was a great rumble from beneath our feet and ceiling debris began to fall. I screamed in pain as a great marble statue fell right on my leg.

"Three…two…one…"

A colossal boom sounded from right beneath us and the TARDIS shook and began to make its whirring noise. I struggled to unhook myself from the slab of marble and hauled myself through the door of the TARDIS. There was an intense burning sensation and I could feel the fire lick at my legs. The Doctor hauled me in the rest of the way and slammed the door shut.

"To Earth, Mercury!" The Doctor was shouting. "Take us to Earth! Anne, hold on, you're going to live, we're going to get help!"

I blacked out as the familiar whirring noise got louder.


	25. 25: Give The World

The sound of beeps filled my ears. I squinted and rolled my eyes around the room. It was very white. In a chair in the corner, I saw my mom, passed out. She was sleeping.

Where was I? It looked like a hospital room. The Doctor had taken me to an Earth hospital? And by the looks of it, he had brought me back to my parents.

Tubes laced into my arm and I took a look at the machines I was hooked up to. They were nothing like what Etnom and the Lord Commander had hooked me up to. The Lord Commander, I thought, there was no way he was still alive. Unless by some miracle he escaped before the place blew, he was long gone. I sighed and sank deeper into the clean, white sheets.

I heard a gasp and saw my dad standing right beyond my mom's chair. Mom woke up from his shocked gasp and the second she saw me, she burst into tears.

"Anne, you're alive!" Mom rushed forward and hugged me around the neck. Weakly, I raised my arms and hugged her back. Mom held me back by my shoulders and her face was now completely streaked with tears. "The second we heard, we rushed straight over."

"What did you hear?" My voice came out as a croak. Mom's eyes filled with more tears. Dad stepped forward.

"You were hit by a car, Anne," Dad said. "We got the call from the hospital saying that you had been brought in."

"Who brought me in?" I asked immediately. Where were the Doctor and Mercury? They couldn't have gone far…

Dad glanced over his shoulder to where the waiting room probably was. "Some man named John Smith saw the whole thing. He's already reported it to the police and everything. He just wants to make sure that you're okay."

"Can you bring him in?" I asked. Mom and Dad glanced at each other before agreeing and allowing me and "Mr. Smith" to talk to each other alone.

The Doctor walked in, still wearing his blue pinstripe suit and brown overcoat. His hair was spiked from running his hands through it and his warm eyes were burning silently. Color rushed to his face when he saw that I had woken up. Without a word he charged up to me and hugged me tightly.

"You have been out of it for a solid week, Miss Worthing." He said as he settled down into the chair that my mom had slept in. I shook my head and gave him a small smile.

"So I got run over by a car?"

The Doctor smirked. "It was the best explanation I could come up with concerning your several broken ribs and crushed leg. Those fools you call doctors said you'll have to go through rehab to be able to walk properly again."

For the first time, I glanced down at what had happened to my leg. It had been crushed by the marble statue. I could make out the crushed flesh and broken veins underneath the surface and I let the sheet fall again, not wanting to look at it. The Doctor was staring at me sadly.

"I'm sorry, I'm so sorry," He said. I felt my stomach swoop when he said that. I knew now that whenever the Doctor started telling you how sorry he was, it was big trouble.

"We can't travel together anymore, right?" I asked. The Doctor looked into my eyes and I knew that it was true. When you traveled with the Doctor, you had to be ready to run as fast as you can on a moment's notice. You can't do that when you were crippled.

"I'm coming back for you." The Doctor told me. "You're not going to sit here by yourself."

"Yeah, but it could take years before my legs have fully healed, Doctor." I pointed out. He looked like he was trying to convince himself otherwise, but my logic was winning. He looked close to tears. I lifted my arm and hugged him across the shoulders. After that, I looked him in the eyes.

"You go ahead," I said. "Have more adventures for me. Get another companion and take them across the universe. But don't forget to come back for me and I want you to tell me about your new adventures."

The Doctor let one tear fall down his face before standing up to leave. He leaned down and kissed me on the forehead. "I'll be back, Miss Worthing." He muttered into my hair. With closed eyes, I listened to him leave.

After the Doctor left, I felt my tears start to burn down my face. But even as I told myself not to worry, that he'd come back one day, I heard the whirring sound of the TARDIS. I realized that he must've parked it somewhere close by so that I could hear him. I blinked away more tears and collapsed back down into my pillows.

I was going to see the Doctor again someday. Whether it was in a few months or a few years, he'd come back. And I'd be able to run away again. Until then, I was just going to have to do one thing that hundreds of people have done before me.

Carry on.

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**A/N: Thank you everyone who read, reviewed, favorited, and alerted this story! I've loved writing it and I hope I have actually started writing a sequel which should be on my profile and it is called "See You Again".**

**I'd like to dedicate this story to my good friend Lawrence; without him, I never would've watched Doctor Who and I never would've felt the drive to write about Anne and her adventures with Ten. I hope everyone has enjoyed this story and I have made a soundtrack to the songs that I obsessed over while writing it (it's on my profile).**

**Once again, thank you so much for clicking on "Carry On" and for going on this grand adventure with me.**

**-Katie**


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